Istanbul not Constantinople
by sarasponda
Summary: Deryn finds herself kidnapped by Volger's brother in this new telling of the Behemoth.
1. Chapter 1

Hogwash.

Everything had turned into barking hogwash.

Normally Deryn would be spending her mornings doing something useful, such as feeding the bats or climbing topside to check on the rigging, but that wasn't the case any longer. Now, she would be using this time to prepare and deliver breakfast for the Count. Barking awful hogwash indeed.

She snapped at the cook to hurry up and be careful not to burn the bacon. Last time Volger had complained and sent her back to retrieve another helping. She had gratefully done so, and then spit in his eggs. That ended with her sporting a nasty bruise on the rump from a smack with the fencing saber. It made matters even worse when the man who you delivered breakfast to was also your new fencing instructor and a damn clever boots as well.

When the bacon was finished and the eggs cooked perfectly, Deryn snatched up the breakfast tray and stomped off toward the Wildcount's quarters. Besides being downgraded to wait staff, she had also lost her best companion on the ship. Only yesterday she had spoken to Alek for the last time ever before he escaped into Istanbul and out of her life. She remembered their conversation clearly.

_"I think…..I think I'm in love!" _ Alek had said.

_"What? I mean, I was going to tell you, but you must have figured it out on your own." _She had answered daftly, honestly hoping that he had been talking about her.

_"Huh?"_

_ "You said you were….um…in love?"_

_ "YES! I think I'm in love with this ship! I've become enamored with the _Leviathan, _Dylan, I just couldn't possibly leave now." _Hogwash, all hogwash. Not only had Alek completely broken her heart, but he had left the _Leviathan _anyways despite what he had said. And to top it all off, Volger was still here, teaching her to fence and rubbing it in her face every minute of it.

When she reached the Count's room she knocked on the door harshly and waited for a response. There wasn't one.

"Oye, Mr. Count, I'm back. Your favorite person ever! And believe it or not I brought you yer breakfast again!"

No answer. Deryn frowned and put her ear to the door to get a better listen. Could the man be still asleep?

"….absolutely not! I don't care what newspaper you are writing for, I am not giving you any answers! Please leave my room immediately before I get even angrier!" Came Volger's voice. It was quiet but harsh.

"Please sir, just a moment of your time. All I need is just a few short…." Said another voice that Deryn didn't recognize.

"GET OUT!" Volger yelled. Deryn jumped back from the door as it was shoved open and a disgruntled looking man fell into her.

"Blisters!" Deryn swore. The tray had been bumped out of her arms and all the food scattered across the floor. The man who had bumped into her stood up and began to rearrange his clothes.

"Terribly sorry sir." He said in a funny accent, "I didn't expect to bump into you like that, but I also didn't expect to be pushed." He turned and gave Volger a nasty glare.

"Ignore him," Volger growled, "He's nothing more than a midshipman with an identity crisis."

Deryn blanched. "WHA?" She fumbled to stand up. "What on Earth are you blethering about now?" She demanded.

Volger scowled. "Nothing that has anything to do with you. So if you wouldn't mind, please escort this gentleman out of my sight!"

"Wait one second." The other man said. He held out his hand for Deryn to shake. She didn't take it so he instead grabbed an object from his jacket and put it on his shoulder. When she looked closer she realized it was some sort of fabricated frog. Funny, wasn't Istanbul a Clanker city?

"I'm Eddie Malone." The man grinned. "I'm a journalist for the New York Post and I was wondering if you could answer a few questions for me."

New York? So this strange man was American, which explained the accent. Deryn eyed him suspiciously and looked at Volger. The Count didn't do anything to stop her from talking, but he didn't look keen about it either.

"Right, fine." She answered. "What do you want?"

Malone grinned at her. "I met the strangest character today, a young boy about the same age as you, said he had a message for someone onboard the _Leviathan._ He wanted me to deliver it to this Count fellow, which I did. Something about escaping from the ship and hiding. You wouldn't happen to know this certain boy, would you?"

Of course he was talking about Alek. "No, never seen him." She said. But the answer didn't seem to appeal to the young reporter.

"Really? That's funny, because he mentioned you."

_WHAT? That barking Clanker Prince! _She thought. _How much of an idiot are you, Alek?_

"Excuse me?"

"Yes, I remember it now. He said he had a friend on board that was a midshipman; a blond skinny fellow with a Scottish accent."

"Yes, what of it?" She glared.

"Well, your Count friend didn't seem at all interested in helping this boy, so maybe you would be? He seems to be in some sort of trouble involving anarchy and would like for some assistance."

That didn't sound good. "What happened?" She asked the American, but the man only shrugged.

"The Count asked me the same thing, but I'm afraid I can't tell you anything until you answer my questions." As soon as he said this, Volger snapped at him.

"You won't be getting any answers! So please LEAVE!" He looked like he was about to shove the man again but Deryn spoke up in order to stop him.

"Hang on a squick! If Alek's in danger we need to know what's going on!" She turned to Malone, "What do you want to know?"

The man was about to open his mouth when Volger interrupted him loudly.

"NO!"

"If the midshipman…."

"NO!"

"He obviously cares about his friend's…"

"I said NO!"

Deryn was shaking in her boots. Was Volger that stubborn that he couldn't give up a few tidbits of information in order to save Alek?

"Barking spiders, Volger, do you care about Alek at all! First you kick him off the ship while you sit here being pampered, and then you abandon him after he sends you a message for help! Blisters! The poor boy just had his parents killed and you send him out into a bloody foreign country by himself! I can't believe you!"

There was a long pause and Deryn slapped her hand over her mouth, suddenly realizing how high her voice had become in that last outrage. Volger's face was puffing up in anger and Malone had pulled out a pen and pad to scribble something down.

"Fascinating, so this Alek fellow is an orphan. Care to elaborate?"

Nobody said anything for a second until Volger pulled himself across the hall and began pointing at Deryn in the chest.

"Clearly I misjudged you, _Mr. _Sharp!" The way he said 'Mr.' had a slight sarcastic tone. "I didn't think you would know so much about Alek."

Even more humiliated now, Deryn realized she had said way too much.

"Very interesting." Said the reporter. "Was the midshipman not supposed to know that?"

Deryn suddenly found herself sucking in her breath and raising her chin. This reporter knew things about Alek that she needed to find out. If Volger was just going to stand there and not do anything, then it was up to her to answer the man's questions.

"No, Alek told me _that _bit of information in confidence. He also…."

But Volger drowned her out with his louder male voice.

"You seem to be very good at spilling secrets, _Mr. _Sharp. In that case, perhaps I could discharge your little secret as well?" He was grinning. Malone stepped an inch closer widened his eyes.

"HOW? I mean….what in the blazes are you talking about? I don't have any secrets!" Deryn cried. Volger just grinned wider, realizing he had her caught.

"I don't know how I didn't see it sooner, but the clues have been stronger as of late. Your fencing lessons have been quite revealing, something in the way you stand. And your outbursts about Alek have been most interesting."

She felt her face go cold. The barking Count had figured her out. It was all over now.

"I'm sure that the Captain would be intrigued by such information, and I would be happy to share it with him. That is, if you don't keep your mouth shut presently, _Mr. _Sharp." Volger purred.

So he was blackmailing her. If she said anything else about Alek to the reporter then her secret would be blown.

"I happen to be very interested in any form of secret." Said Malone. "If you could share that instead of other information, I'm sure I could give you the whereabouts of a certain young boy."

So Malone was willing to take her secret instead of Alek's? That seemed like a bizarre thing to say. But Deryn found that she didn't really have much choice in the matter. She needed to find Alek if he was in trouble. If Volger wasn't going to cooperate, then she was going to have to instead. She turned to face the American reporter before speaking again.

"I'm a girl." She said firmly.

Malone gave her a toothy smile. "Marvelous!" He said. Volger was giving Deryn a shocked but pleased expression.

_Goodbye Airship._ She thought as he life turned to more hogwash then ever before.


	2. Chapter 2

She reread the letter for the fifth time to make sure she had it right.

_Meet me at _Yellowtide. _9:00 AM sharp, Tuesday. We have some important things to discuss. _

_ I'll be wearing blue. _

_ -A. V._

_Barking strange,_ Deryn thought, especially since it was typed not handwritten. The paper was cheap and thin but whoever had wrote the note had bothered to type it out. She had deduced that they didn't want their handwriting recognized. Whoever A.V. was, they wanted to remain secret until she met with them.

At first she had assumed that A.V. was Alek, but that didn't make sense. Why would Alek type a note? And what would 'V' stand for? Von? Plus he wouldn't have to tell her he was wearing blue, she would recognize him. It was way too weird and clever to be written by Alek anyways.

The note had been folded into a perfect square and slipped under her door while she was sleeping. When she found it in the morning there was no sign of who might have left it. It had to be from someone onboard the _Leviathan,_ because no one else was permitted on the ship while they were stopped in Istanbul. Very barking strange.

She realized she should probably turn the letter in to the Captain, but after revealing that she was a girl to Volger and the reporter, she was too scared to talk to any of the officers. So far no one was treating her any differently, so she figured Volger had kept his mouth shut. Who knows how long he had been doing so anyways. Eddie Malone had sworn to her he wouldn't tell a soul until he was back in New York, but that didn't mean Deryn trusted him.

No, she had kept the note to herself and decided to meet this A.V. on Tuesday morning. Now that Tuesday morning had arrived she was wondering if she had made the best choice. This person could be anyone; a German spy, an anarchist, another reporter. None of which would be safe for her to meet with. But one thing kept tugging at her mind. This person had important information to tell her, meaning they could know things about Alek.

Currently she was standing on the docks of Istanbul wondering which way was best to get to _Yellowtide. _She had found out from several of the crewmembers that _Yellowtide _was a bar and restaurant only a block away from where the _Leviathan _was docked. She just had to make her way through the odd crowds around the airship and not get lost.

Istanbul was packed with the most bizarre looking people she had ever seen. The Turks wore bright colorful scarves, hats and suits. Women wore scarves on their heads for religious purposes, so she had heard, even if it was nearly eighty degrees outside. On top of that she was mesmerized by the Clanker contraptions that marched through the streets. Large walkers designed to look like animals paraded past the buildings. The people didn't even seem to notice the gigantic metal creatures as they went about their daily ventures.

Various children from different ethnic backgrounds would swarm anyone who stopped long enough, begging for money. Three different boys had stopped her in the last five minutes either begging or trying to sell her some odd form of food. Deryn didn't have any money, but she did get one of the kids to point her in the direction of the _Yellowtide _and apologized that she didn't have any coins to tip him. She walked down a narrow street and past an elaborate fountain before finding the small restaurant next to a bookstore.

It was a dark and tiny establishment that reeked of tobacco smoke, but it was also very cozy. The wooden tables were packed with sailors and travelers all chattering in an assortment of different languages. Deryn scanned the crowd, looking for anyone in blue. Toward the back of the room was a single man in a faded blue military jacket. He seemed average enough besides that he was the only one in the restaurant sitting by himself. She made her way over to him.

When she was standing next to his table he gave her a confused look and then said something to her in a language she didn't recognize. She replied to him in English.

"Sorry to bother you, but would you happen to be A.V.?"

He raised his eyebrows and motioned for her to sit down. Deryn pulled in to the bench across from him and sat silently for a second, taking in this new stranger.

He was a scruffy looking fellow who looked like he hadn't bathed in weeks. He had a shaggy beard that almost covered his entire face and bushy eyebrows that matched his rumpled auburn hair on top of his head. Surprisingly his beard was a bright red/orange, completely different from his eyebrows and scalp. The military jacket was worn and tattered and he was smoking a long wooden pipe. But when he smiled the grin was handsome with rows of perfect white teeth.

"Adalrich Volger." The man said, holding out his hand for her to shake. She took it.

"Um…Midshipman Dylan Sharp." She said, wondering if it was safe to give this man her name. "Hang on squick, did you say Volger?"

"I did." He said plainly, then leaned back and put both feet up on the table. He took a long pull from his pipe before speaking again. "You are not the person I was expecting to meet with, Mr. Sharp." He had a strong Clanker accent but his English was very good.

She blushed and pulled out the typed note. "Well, someone gave me this letter."

Adalrich gave her another grin which made his deep eyes sparkle a bit. Deryn couldn't help but feel her cheeks flush a tad.

"I know the letter," he said, "I wrote it. But it was meant for my brother, not for you."

She felt her eyes widen in their sockets. "You are the Count's brother?"

The man gave a loud colorful laugh. "I am indeed."

_He doesn't look a squick like him._ She thought. But when she looked a little harder she noticed a few familiar traits in Adalrich. He had a recognizable smugness and his smile had the same bend to it as the Count's. She could tell he wasn't nearly as tall as the Volger she knew but his shoulders were the same shape and they shared those wiry fencing arms. Even his mustache, although a different color and extremely shaggy had a memorable bowtie form.

"The Count is being held captive." She told him. "He wouldn't be allowed off the ship to meet with you anyways, so be glad the message was delivered to me instead."

Adalrich nodded and puffed out a few smoke rings. "Makes sense." He said.

But something didn't make sense to Deryn. How did Volger's brother know that the Count was on the _Leviathan_? According to Alek, no one had known of their escape to Switzerland, and no one would have known that they were taken prisoner by the _Leviathan. _

"Who told you your brother was on the airship?" She asked boldly. The question awarded her another grin as Adalrich pushed something on the table toward her. It was a newspaper. The page it was turned to had several large portraits of Alek's men, all next to large print captions in German. She was happy to see no picture of Alek himself, but recognized the words for 'Hapsburg' and 'Leviathan' next to them.

"My brother and his men are famous now that some of them are escaped prisoners. When I found out about this I came to Istanbul immediately and went to look for him. Apparently the entire German army is looking for him as well. I guess it makes sense then that he would send a midshipman in his place."

So Count Volger had given her the note? Had it originally been sent to him? She wasn't too surprised.

"I need to get my brother and his men off of that ship." Adalrich continued. "You seem to know them well, Mr. Sharp. Were you sent to help me?"

Help him? She couldn't. Assisting prisoners of war off of the ship was mutiny. Then again she really wanted to help him. Getting rid of the Count would definitely be an improvement. Plus, Volger should be off the ship and helping Alek.

"Do you know anything about the Prince?" She asked.

Adalrich narrowed his eyes at her and Deryn realized she probably shouldn't have brought it up.

"What about him?" The man responded.

"Umm, nothing, never mind."

"Why? Do you know anything about him?"

"Of course not!" She lied. Better not tell him that Alek was escaped from the ship. Even if he was Volger's brother.

The man sighed and took another puff from the pipe before removing his feet from the table and standing up.

"Well, this has been a great chat, but I have some more information that I can't talk about here. Would you join me in a ride across town?"

That was something she couldn't do for him. "Umm, I'm sorry sir, but I have to get back to the ship. I have duties and…."

"Sorry, I must have said that wrong. I need you to come with me."

"Huh?"

He grabbed her arm and started pulling her toward the door. "No dawdling, Mr. Sharp. It's time to go." She tried to struggle away from him, but he was much stronger than her. Before long he had her out the door and across the street. He continued to apologize to her politely while still holding her arm.

"I'm terrible sorry to take you hostage like this."

"LET GO OF ME!"

"I would really appreciate it if you didn't make a scene, then I won't have to hurt you."

"OUCH!" He was twisting her arm so hard it felt like it was burning. Deryn saw him pull a knife from his jacket and hold it to the back of her neck.

"Shut your mouth, we're almost there." He shoved her into a Clanker vehicle that looked like a large praying mantis. Inside it was big enough to carry about four people. Adalrich pushed her into a seat before sitting next to her and taking the controls. An instant later the walker was weaving quickly in out of the people on the street. Deryn looked out of the window in time to see the _Leviathan_ at the docks slowly getting smaller in the distance.

"Not to worry, Mr. Sharp, we'll have you back soon." Said Adalrich. Something about his voice made Deryn think otherwise.

_And this is why Ma told me never to talk to strangers! _ She thought as the praying mantis turned off of the main street and the _Leviathan _was completely lost from view.


	3. Chapter 3

"Do you like fruit?" Alek asked the creature. It seemed silly to talk to it, but one had to keep in mind that this creature was capable of talking as well.

"Fruit?" The animal responded in German. It was kind of scary how it sounded just like his own voice. Alek pulled a grape from his breakfast platter and handed it to the animal. With its funny fingers it snatched it away from him and gobbled the grape down in one bight.

It was certainly a terrifying sight, like a monkey mixed with a cat. For the most part he wished he had left it in the boiler room when it had hatched. However, he had to admit that those clever eyes and little velvet ears were quite cute.

"It seems that he does like fruit." Lilit giggled. Alek looked at her in surprise. It was the first time he had seen her smile since he had met her yesterday. Lilit was a beautiful girl, but that didn't mean she was friendly. Mostly everything she said was a sly remark or a nasty insult directed to Alek personally. But then again he really shouldn't have expected anything more from an anarchist.

The creature jumped off of the floor and into Alek's plate where it continued to stuff down the grapes. Disgruntled, Alek groaned realizing that his toast and jam were completely torn apart by the creature's feet, or paws, or whatever you would call them.

Lilit was grinning ear to ear. "I like him!" She beamed. "We have to think of a name for him!"

"Ummm….I suppose. But we aren't really supposed to name fabrications."

"Why not?" She asked, crossing her arms in disgust.

He couldn't think of a good answer so she answered for him.

"You can't go around calling him 'the creature' all the time." She sighed. "Perhaps something cute?"

Alek shrugged. "We could call it Fruit."

"You can't name something a Fruit, that's disrespectful" She snapped back.

Alek didn't understand what she was talking about so he just rolled his eyes.

"Fine, I don't care. Do you have any brilliant ideas?" He growled.

"Well, you could still call it after a food. Maybe a British food, since it is British." She picked up the animal from Alek's plate and put it in her lap. The creature purred as she scratched it behind the ears. "Have you ever heard of Bovril?"

Alek frowned. "No, what on earth is that?"

"It's a kind of meat extract. You put it in hot water or milk to make a drink."

He scrunched up his face. "That sounds downright awful!"

"I happen to find it quite delicious!" Lilit retorted. "And I think it suits your creature well!"

Alek only shrugged. It was useless arguing with her. Over the past few hours that he had been captured here Alek had decided that it was better to agree with Lilit on everything. It was worth being wrong as long as you didn't have to fight with her about it.

And she was quite a fighter; there was no doubt about that. He had been walking down the streets Istanbul by himself when she ambushed him. At first he had thought she was a man and drew his knife on her, but once she lifted her hood he knew he was mistaken. That was the first time Alek learned that it was better not to fight with Lilit because she always won.

In that specific case she had wrestled him away from his knife and forced him down an alleyway and down a darkened staircase. Now he was her captive and completely under the watch and control of her anarchist family.

"Yes!" She squealed, lifting the creature into her arms to give it a squeeze. "I think Bovril suits you perfectly!"

Alek munched on his toast in annoyance. He had rather liked the name Fruit.

* * *

><p><em>For this chapter I looked up the official Bovril Website for the food product. Personally, it sounds like a completely disgusting idea. Literally liquid cow. But apparently many people think it's the cat's meow and to them I say, eww<em>


	4. Chapter 4

Nine times out of ten Deryn would have loved a free ride around a new city. Adventuring in a new city was almost as exciting as flying to one. But instead of gawking out the window at the majestic buildings passing by, Deryn was staring at her driver.

Adalrich Volger was an impressive man. Even in his shabby clothing and scruffy beard he still held a pose about him that reeked of aristocracy. Yet it wasn't as snooty as the Count. Adalrich had more grace and charm in the way he moved, like when Alek fenced.

She watched his hands move smoothly over the controls, switching from one lever to the wheel and back all in perfect rhythm with his feet on the pedals. He did all this while constantly keeping his eyes on the road and never looking down at his hands. It frightened her how much the machine depended on his exact movements. She remembered how easy it had been for Alek to tip over his stormwalker and felt a sudden admiration for this man and his piloting skills. Understanding how easy it had been to flip a huge stormwalker, she realized that a small vehicle such as this one would be a cinch to screw up.

Deryn slammed her foot into the mixture of pedals beneath Adalrich's feet. The intricate gears and metal levers tangled up around one another, like the keys of an old type writer. Adalrich swore bitterly in German before stomping on one of the pedals which punched into Deryn's foot. At the same time the car tilted forward as the vehicle rolled over in a forward summersault. Adalrich was thrown from his seat and out the windshield with a loud crash. Deryn's body also flew forward but she was painfully pulled back by her foot since the pedals were still holding onto it tightly. Her head whipped backward roughly causing stars to flash before eyes. After a moment she noticed that she was upside down, as was the rest of the car, and that someone was screaming at her.

"Ihn retten!" Said the screaming. "DUMMKOPF! Ihn abholen!"

Smoke had begun to fill the compartment from the engines. Deryn coughed and her eyes watered. She was forgetting what had happened and where she was until something moved and she saw a sliver of light open up on her left. Someone had cracked the door open of the upside down clanker-mobile. The screaming stopped when they grabbed her and yanked her out of the car.

She was scooped up into someone's arms and rushed across the busy road and into a nearby alleyway. When they finally put her down onto the cool pavement, Deryn looked up to see a figure huddled over her, guarding her with their own body to protect her from the smoking car across the street.

A moment passed and Deryn realized that the person was squeezing her tightly and muttering terrified snippets of German. It took another moment for Deryn to realize it was a woman that was holding her, and that the woman was crying.

"It's…..It's all right now, Miss." Deryn sputtered. "I think I'm going to be fine, if you could just let go of me and…"

Her voice must have snagged something in her rescuer's mind. Deryn felt the woman freeze and her crying suddenly stopped. She finally lifted her face so Deryn could see her.

Blisters did she have a sour expression.

With both hands the woman shoved Deryn to the pavement and stood up. Deryn's head hit the ground with a nasty thud.

"Barking spiders, you don't need to push me!" She cried.

The other woman was shaking in anger. She glowered down at Deryn with big black eyes spiked with fury.

"Who are YOU?" She demanded in English. Deryn just glared back, wondering what had changed the woman's mood so quickly.

She was a short lady and slender, probably just a bit older than Dr. Barlow. Her dark hair was tied back in a messy ponytail with several wisps sticking out in different directions. Deryn was surprised to see her wearing trousers and men's cargo boots, although her jacket was an expensive woman's dress coat. Everything she wore was frayed and torn, especially the jacket which was covered in many holes.

"HEY NOW!" Said Aldarich's voice. He ran over and stood beside the dark haired woman, panting and completely unscathed from the accident. "What on Earth made you do something like THAT?" He screamed at Deryn while pointing back to his destroyed walker. The people in the street were beginning to flock around it in confusion.

"WO IST ER!" The woman turned and shoved Aldarich to the ground.

"I know, I know, it's not him. He didn't show up so I grabbed this fellow instead." Aldarich gestured to Deryn. "He works on the airship, so I thought…."  
>The woman kicked him, hard. "YOU NEVER THINK! You grabbed the wrong person! What are we supposed to do now!" She walked over to Deryn, grabbed her arm and lifted her up so they were eye to eye. "Are you going to answer me! WHO ARE YOU?"<p>

"uuuuuh…..Dylan…I'm Dylan."

The woman scrunched up her nose and eyebrows before tossing Deryn back on the ground.

"OUCH!" Deryn yelped. She had landed on her sore foot.

"YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO RESCUE…." The woman screamed

"I'm sorry ma'am but he's still locked on board the air beast. There was no way he could just walk off and come have a chat with me in a restaurant." Said Aldarich.

Deryn thought the woman would breathe fire at him but instead she turned about on her heel and marched back onto the street. Aldarich watched her go before standing and wiping the dust off of his pants.

"Women; beautiful as they might be they still manage to ruin every moment of your life." He growled. Without another word he pulled Deryn up and helped her hobble down the street after the angry lady.

Deryn's foot still hut but she was able to keep up with Aldarich and walk all the way down the road and across two bridges. They followed the dark haired woman to a rickety old wooden building and up to the top floor. Deryn cursed every time her foot hit a stair. Finally they shoved her into what looked like an old apartment and onto a dusty, silk couch. Immediately Deryn undid her shoes revealing an impressive bruise on her right foot nearly the size of her fist.

"Are you injured?" The woman asked. It wasn't rude but there was no kindness in her question.

"Aye, my foot." Deryn grimaced. The woman marched over and took Deryn's foot in her hand. She poked the bruise a bit, causing the girl to curse.

"BARKING SPIDERS!"

"Well, I don't think it's broken, just badly bruised. I'll get you some ice." The woman said nonchalantly. She dropped Deryn's foot and walked off into another room which must have been the kitchen.

Deryn cradled her injury in her lap and winced as Aldarich plopped on the couch beside her. He pulled out his pipe and began stuffing it with some tobacco leaves.

"Sorry about that." He said, pointing to her foot with his free hand. "I didn't mean to hurt you. But honestly, what insanity possessed you to kick your foot into the controls?"

Deryn scowled at him. "You kidnapped me!" She barked.

The man frowned and nodded while pulling out a match and lighting the pipe. "I guess it would look like that from your point of view."

Deryn's mouth dropped open. "You said so yourself that you were taking me hostage!"

Adalrich shrugged. "I know. And I'm sorry about that as well, but it was necessary."

"Why?"

He took a puff from the pipe and smiled at her. "You are going to help us get people off of the _Leviathan. _My bother for one, and of course Miss Bauer's husband."

"Bauer?" Deryn sat up and looked over the back of the couch to try and see the woman in the kitchen. "She's Bauer's wife?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Aldarich sighed and pulled Deryn back down by the back of her shirt. "Don't stare son, she'll bite your arm off."

Mrs. Bauer must have heard him because she screamed something nasty and in German.

"She's a gorgeous sight, I know, but she also has quite a temper." Aldarich grinned and gave Deryn a wink.

"ONLY BECAUSE YOU CAN'T KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF!" Mrs. Bauer bellowed from the next room.

Aldarich gave Deryn an innocent face. "I can't help myself. Beautiful women are my weakness and she's the most beautiful of them all!"

"SHUT UP!"

"It's true my dear." He called back to her. "It's such a pity that you are wasted on a simple man like Hans Bauer. One day you will realize your mistake and by then I will be long gone. Such a shame."

Deryn heard loud footsteps stomp into the room as Mrs. Bauer walked to the front of the couch.

"I would think you, of all people, would not be saying such things when considering the current situation!" She said dramatically. "Idiot that you are, you garb the wrong person at the restaurant and then crash a walker in the middle of the street! Can you imagine what would have happened if you were caught! In case you forgot we are supposed to be IN HIDING!" She crossed her arms and leaned forward to stare at Aldarich. Deryn thought she saw tears on her cheeks.

"I'm sorry Sonja," He bowed mockingly from his seat. "I should have realized that taking Mr. Sharp captive would upset you so much."

Mrs. Bauer threw her arms above her head in fury and let out a cry of frustration before stomping away back into the kitchen.

"She was expecting you to be her _husband." _Aldarich said to Deryn, emphasizing on the word 'husband'. "That was why she pulled you out of the walker when it crashed. You can understand her shock when you weren't who she was expecting."

Deryn took a moment away from the yelling Austrians to remember how frantic Sonja Bauer had been. She had almost squeezed the life out of Deryn before realizing that she wasn't her husband.

"How could she have mixed us up? I don't look anything like Bauer."

Aldarich's eyes widened in shock for a second, but he quickly changed expressions and brushed off Deryn's question.

"No matter, Mr. Sharp, she is very temperamental. It's because she's madly in love with me."

Another long line of German curses came from the kitchen and Deryn heard something crash against the wall.

"Do you need help, ma'am?" Aldarich said and took a long drag from the pipe. "I didn't think getting ice from the ice box was so difficult."

"YOU!" Sonja burst into the room clutching a bag of ice. "You have the ability to JOKE during a time like this, after what could have been, after WHO Mr. Sharp could have been!"

"Well, I'm not joking, you are in love with me."

"DUMMKOPF!" She bellowed and then tossed the bag of ice right at Aldarich's head. He caught it with one hand and then winked at Mrs. Bauer. Once again she screamed and marched out of the room. Deryn stared after her in shock.

"Pop your eyes back in, Mr. Sharp, you look like a bug." He handed her the ice.

Deryn shook her head back and forth and gulped. This was too weird. She had thought Dr. Barlow had an anger problem, but obviously she was wrong.

Aldarich exhaled a cloud of smoke and put his feet up on the coffee table in front of the couch.

"I'm sorry you had to see that Dylan, she really is a kind woman. Lately she has become more and more grumpy as we've made our way closer to Istanbul. She clearly can only see the negative in the situation. Obviously we were unable to rescue her husband, but finding a midshipman instead has its benefits. Having you on our side will be extremely helpful." He sighed deeply. "Unfortunately, Sonja never sees the benefits."

Deryn felt her sides quiver. Something about the way Aldarich was talking about her made her uneasy.

"Aye, but I can't help you sir. That would be mutiny."

Aldarich grinned. "I'm afraid that you don't have much choice, Mr. Sharp."

Deryn gulped. She wished she had never received that letter.


	5. Chapter 5

He may have only been stuck in the warehouse for three days, but to Alek it felt like a month. Not that his time with the anarchists had been horrible. He wasn't tied up like a prisoner or forced into solitude. In fact, he had been allowed free range of grounds as long as he was under constant supervision. That was the only major downfall. Everywhere he went he had to be at least one meter away from somebody else. And that somebody else was almost always Lilit.

"Could you maybe give me a bit of privacy?" Alek asked politely.

"How much more privacy do you need? The door is closed?" Lilit answered rudely.

_Hasn't anyone ever taught this girl any manners? _Alek thought to himself. Godswounds, he couldn't even go to the bathroom by himself.

"You don't need to stand right next to the door. In fact, I would really appreciate it if you could move into the hallway for a minute." He said nicely.

"And have you escape the instant I turn around? Not on your life!" She retorted.

Alek crossed his arms in fury and rolled his eyes even though Lilit couldn't see him. He had never met anyone so rude and blunt. Well, that wasn't entirely true. Dylan had much worse language and manners than the anarchist girl. But since Dylan was a boy it wasn't nearly as shocking.

"Forget it." Alek groaned. There was no point in trying to relieve himself with Lilit standing by. Once again he would have to hold his bladder until a more convenient time. It had been the third time that morning he had failed to sneak of to the water closet without the girl noticing, and by now he thought his kidneys might explode.

"You piss a lot." Lilit said when he came out of the latrine. "That's twice in an hour. Do you have an infection or something?"

Alek flushed. Once again he was amazed by how straight forward this young woman was.

"NO!" He said, finally losing his temper."You won't let me use the facilities, so I haven't been able to….um….piss…yet this morning!"

Lilit only laughed. "You're weird." She said. "Come on, Nene is waiting. She says she has something important to show you." Before he could answer back, Bovril jumped off of Lilit's shoulder and into Alek's arms.

"Piss!" Said the loris.

"SHH!" Alek hushed the creature. No need to be rude in front of Lilit's grandmother. The woman was a proud and wise lady even if she was confined to a walking bed. The first time Alek had met her she had figured out who he was within minutes of meeting him.

Lilit led him into an elevator lift to the top story of the warehouse where the living quarters for the family were. She ushered him down a short hallway and into her grandmother's bedroom.

"Good morning Aleksander." Nene chimed from her bed. She was wearing her usual nightgown and sipping a cup of tea. "You may take a seat next to me, if you please." She patted a spot on the bed and Alek hesitated for a second before sitting down.

"Nene, what is going on?" Lilit asked, obviously puzzled that the woman hadn't asked her to sit as well.

"I need to have a few words with Aleksander privately, my dear. So if you would, please give us some time alone."

Alek wanted to tell Nene that Lilit didn't understand what privacy meant, but he kept his mouth shut. Lilit was even able to keep quiet for once as well. She gave her grandmother a nasty scowl before exiting the room.

"I hope that Lilit is treating you kindly. She can be a bit stubborn sometimes, but she means you the best."

"She is very good at….speaking her mind." Alek mumbled.

Nene laughed loudly. "Yes, Lilit has always shown excellent communication skills. However, I am in need of your help today, not hers."

She snapped her fingers and Zaven, Lilit's father, entered the room. He smiled at Alek but didn't say anything. In his arms was a small box with holes in it. He placed it in Nene's arms, bowed and exited the room the way he came.

"My men found this beside one of the trash compartments last night." She gestured to the box. "We have no idea where it came from, but I have a feeling that it is valuable and that I should hold on to it. Would you care to take a look?" When she opened the lid of the box something jumped out and onto the bed spread. It was a large bullfrog that Alek recognized from his meeting with Eddie Malone.

"It's a Darwinist Fabrication." Alek told the woman. "I saw it when I was interviewed by a reporter from New York. He said it helped him take notes." Truthfully Alek had never considered the frog as more than a travel companion to the reporter, like Taza was for the boffin. He never saw the animal do anything suspicious; it just looked like any average bullfrog.

"Oh." Nene said. "I thought it might have something to do with you." She patted the frog on the head and the thing began to speak. Alek bounced off the bed in horror and stared wide eyed at the fabrication.

"_Barking spiders, Volger, do you care about Alek at all! First you kick him off the ship while you sit here being pampered, and then you abandon him after he sends you a message for help! Blisters! The poor boy just had his parents killed and you send him out into a bloody foreign country by himself! I can't believe you_!" The frog pronounced in what was clearly Dylan's voice, although Dylan sounded a lot higher pitched and breathier.

_"Clearly I misjudged you_, Mr_. __Sharp!" _ That was certainly Volger. The way he said the word 'mister' sounded very bizarre, even Bovril picked up on it.

"_Mr. _Sharp!" The loris mimicked. The bullfrog didn't stop and continued on with more of the conversation.

_ "You seem to be very good at spilling secrets, _Mr_. __Sharp. In that case, perhaps I could discharge your little secret as well?"_

_ "HOW? I mean….what in the blazes are you talking about? I don't have any secrets!"_

_ "I don't know how I didn't see it sooner, but the clues have been stronger as of late. Your fencing lessons have been quite revealing, something in the way you stand. And your outbursts about Alek have been most interesting."_

Alek didn't know how he felt about listening to this. He definitely felt guilty, especially since Dylan seemed so upset. Whatever they were discussing it involved some sort of secret Dylan was hiding. Alek didn't think the midshipman would have any secrets and even if he did Volger had no right to reveal them.

"I don't want to listen to this!" Alek told Nene. If his friend had secrets he should hear them from Dylan directly and not through a frog.

"SHH!" Nene shushed him. "This part is important."

_"I happen to be very interested in any form of secret."_ Said Malone. _"If you could share that instead of other information, I'm sure I could give you the whereabouts of a certain young boy."_

There was a long pause and Alek thought he heard Dylan crying. Strange, Dylan never cried.

_"I'm a girl." _

Alek felt his face grow cold. The statement was in Dylan's voice, but not the same voice he was used to. It was even higher than before and softer, like if Dylan had a twin sister.

But Dylan didn't have a sister, at least not to Alek's knowledge. Yet the voice wasn't Dylan, it couldn't be. Dylan wasn't a girl!

Dylan was the strong masculine airman that Alek dreamed of being himself. He had wrestled Huxleys, shot machine guns, climbed the rigging and even jumped onboard a moving stormwalker. There was no way Dylan could be female. Women didn't do things like that! Sure, Dylan had delicate features and a pretty face, but many boys had pretty faces, right? Of course right! And why was he thinking Dylan was pretty, that was ludicrous!

Alek looked down to see that Nene was grinning at him.

"A girl disguising herself as a man? Very interesting. And it seems that she knows you, Aleksander."

"SHE?" Alek was beside himself. "Dylan is NOT a _she_! Whoever recorded this message was obviously trying to make some sort of joke. Malone must have something against Dylan, or maybe it was somebody else. Whatever the case, Dylan can't be a woman! I know him! You think I would have noticed whether he was a girl or not!"

"Hmm, well if he is a boy then he's a boy with a strong affection for you."

"WHAT?"

"Think about it. He obviously helped you get off the airship when he clearly wasn't supposed to, he accuses this Count of treating you poorly and then he gives up the secret that he's a woman because he wants to find out where you are."

"That's preposterous! If Dylan was really a girl he would have told me!" Alek replied, because that was really where he was confused. Alek had told Dylan everything about his parents and who he was. Dylan was the only one Alek could trust with such confidential information, and in return Dylan had become his best friend, a person Alek trusted immensely. It made no sense that Dylan would harbor such an important secret from him.

"Are you sure about that?"

"YES!" He growled. "And you aren't going to change my mind with a silly little frog. Honestly, do you think I would believe a crazy fabrication that happened to land on your doorstep? How outrageous!"

"Whatever you say dear." Nene smiled sadly. "It really doesn't matter to me either way. What does interest me though is that you were on an airship to begin with."

Alek flushed. He hadn't mentioned to the anarchists that he had arrived in Istanbul via the _Leviathan. _

"I…..I didn't think that was important." Alek mumbled.

"Really? You didn't think I'd want to know that the British Navy was holding the future Archduke of Austria as captive?"

Alek was ashamed enough to look away. "I'm sorry."

Nene brushed the air with her hand. "No matter, what's done is done. But Alek, now that I know this I need to ask of you a favor." She snapped her fingers again and shouted something in Turkish to the doorway. "Since you admit to being on the _Leviathan_ and meeting this frog before, perhaps you can identify the man that came with him?"

"You mean Eddie Malone? Is he here? I thought you said the bullfrog was found by the trash?"

"It was, and so was the man."

Alek's nostrils suddenly filled with the reeking stench of decomposing meat as three men walked into the room carrying a large rug between them. They dropped the carpet on the floor and unrolled it. Inside was Eddie Malone, or what was left of him.

Alek's bladder couldn't hold itself any longer, and with the sudden appearance of Malone's body, he felt a warm liquid dripping down his leg.

"You didn't keep it outside all day, did you?" Nene screamed in German. She was plugging her nose and glaring at the men who had carried in the body. "I don't need that in my room stinking up the entire place!"

"You wanted the boy to see him, ma'am, and we couldn't keep him in the cellar because of the rats."

Alek felt his stomach lurch dangerously. These anarchists were obviously used to seeing bodies on a regular basis because none of them seemed at all scared or upset by Malone's form. Nene was barley alarmed except for her discomfort with the smell.

"Whatever! Just make sure to dispose of it properly. Aleksander, darling, does the man look familiar to you?"

Alek gulped down a mouthful of bile and stepped forward to get a better look at the body.

Eddie Malone hadn't been older than thirty when he died. His face was stuck in a frightening expression. One of his eyes was still open and his mouth was curved down in a horrible frown. There wasn't any blood but Alek could make out the slit across his throat, dark red against the pale grayish skin.

"Yes." He finally choked out. "It's Malone, the reporter from the New York Post."

"When did you see him last?"

"Uhhh, maybe a week ago. He wanted to interview me for his paper."

Nene nodded. "Very good. Boris, please get that thing out of here, you can see it's frightening the boy. Poor thing just soiled himself he's so startled."

The men looked to Alek's pants where a wet blotch was apparent through the fabric. One of them snickered and the others gave Alek sheepish grins, but they left without saying anything. Alek was too embarrassed to move. His feet felt plastered to the floor.

"Thank goodness that's over with. I'm sorry dear; I forgot you were brought up in such a sheltered life style. You probably have never seen a murdered corpse before."

_And most people do? _Alek thought to himself.

"Times are difficult here during a revolution. We lose several souls each day on the streets."

"Do you….do you think he was killed because of the revolt?" Alek said quietly.

"Could be, but I think it more likely it had something to do with you."

Alek's heart must have stopped beating because the room suddenly felt very silent and still.

"For that reason I can't keep you here in my warehouse. It's too dangerous." Nene said.

"You mean, you're kicking me out?"

"Not exactly. I still need you for other reasons, but for now it would be safer to remove you from the area where the reporter was killed. I'll have you escorted to a hotel in town. Also, I think it wise for you to send word to your friends on the _Leviathan._ The Count that was mentioned by the frog will probably come in handy in the future.

Alek wanted to say that he had tried to contact Volger before, but it had been through Malone, who was now dead.

"I know what you're thinking sweetheart; it might be dangerous to go back to the _Leviathan, _but don't you worry. I have plenty of trained individuals who can assist in the situation. Now, be a dear and go change your pants. I'm sure you don't want Lilit seeing you as such."

Alek blushed and exited the room. It seemed he was finally alone for a minute and could have the privacy he wanted before. However, he found out he was wrong about that as soon as he got back into the elevator.

"Had an accident, did we?" Lilit bubbled from behind him. "Are you sure you don't have a bladder infection?"

Alek would have punched her if he were someone like Dylan. Then again, Dylan wouldn't have a qualm with punching a girl.


	6. Chapter 6

Deryn HATED shopping! One of the benefits of joining the military was that she wouldn't have to do girlie things like shopping anymore. To her, every street merchant in Istanbul looked like they were selling the same thing. All the rugs, scarves and dresses looked barking similar to Deryn, but Sonja obviously didn't think so. She currently was holding up two practically identical blue head wraps, debating whether she should get the one with beads or without.

"They obviously spent hours embroidering these beads on but I can't help but think they look a little tacky." She said.

"Then get the other one." Deryn replied.

"Yes, but that one doesn't have the black trim that I like."

"Then get the one with the beads"

"But I don't like the beads."

"BARKING SPIDERS, THEN GET THEM BOTH! Honestly woman, they are practically the same thing!" She shouted.

Sonja's delight in the scarves was instantly morphed into a look of despair. Her eyes watered and her face scrunched up in a scowl.

"You have no reason to YELL at me!" She snapped at Deryn, a hint of a whimper in her voice.

"Well you're the one who's taking a year and a half to buy a stupid scarf!" She realized that the women around them were all staring at her, but she didn't care. "And now you're going to get all hormonal and start blubbering all over yourself!"

"I AM…*sniff*…NOT!" But Sonja had large wet tears streaming down her cheeks. It was more than Deryn could take. She had had enough with emotional women due to her sister in laws and aunties. Right now she really wished she was back on the airship.

Without another word to Sonja Bauer, Deryn turned around and marched away from the market vendor and toward Aldarich. The man was a safe distance behind them puzzling over Turkish knives at another vendor.

"You had to bring me with you!" She spitted at the man.

"Sonja insisted. She hasn't been able to go shopping with another woman in weeks."

Deryn almost tripped over her own foot. "WAIT! You know that I'm a….."

"A girl? Why yes." Aldarich looked away from the knife he was holding and beamed at her. "I have to admit though; you had me fooled for a day or so. But there's something in the way you walk and talk that gave it away."

Deryn was shaking in her boots. Were all the Volgers so barking brilliant, or was she just stuck with the only two who were so perceptive? She had been staying with Aldarich and Sonja for three days now, and for the most part they seemed too busy arguing amongst themselves to pay much attention to her. She still was there captive until they figured out a way to get the rest of the Clankers off of the _Leviathan. _In the meantime, she had learned a couple things about them that they probably didn't want shared.

"I wouldn't mind shopping with her if she wasn't so barking prenatal!" She grinned.

That wiped the smile off of Aldarich's face. His eyes widened and his skin turned white.

"I beg your pardon, but I believe that word is beyond my English." He said, although he was clearly lying.

"She's pregnant you blethering ninny!" She crossed her arms to emphasize the point. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed."

Obviously he hadn't because he was looking over Deryn's head to see if he could get a better view of Mrs. Bauer at the other booth.

"How…how?"

"Her mood swings have been unbearable, she cries at the drop of a hat, she eats as much as a tigeresque, and she puked this morning four times."

"But that doesn't mean she's pregnant!"

"No, but it's definitely a strong possibility. Believe me, I have six nieces and nephews and I witnessed each of their nasty pregnancies. I know a pregnant woman when I see one."

"But… are you sure?"

"You don't have to believe me. I mean, how should I know, I am a boy." Deryn said sarcastically with a shrug. She expected Aldarich to look mortified, or to at least appear ashamed. He could do the math as well as she could.

Mrs. Bauer had been separated from her husband for nearly three months now. After that amount of time with a legitimate pregnancy the woman would be showing some sign of swelling in the belly. If Deryn suspected correctly Mrs. Bauer was only a few weeks gone; definitely the cause of scandalous behavior, and Deryn could easily guess who was to blame for the babe in the woman's tummy.

Yet Aldarich didn't seem at all upset by Deryn's accusation. Instead, he looked downright delighted.

With a squeal of glee he scooped Deryn up and swung her around.

"You wonderful girl! This is the best news I've heard in weeks!" Then he practically dropped her before running the distance to embrace Sonja. The woman was still crying over her daft scarves and was quite shocked when Aldarich started smothering her with kisses. Deryn sighed and walked over to the bizarre couple.

"What is the meaning of this! GET OFF OF ME!" Mrs. Bauer was trying to pry Aldarich's hands off of her without any success.

"Why didn't you tell me darling? Who would have thought that such a miracle would be possible during a war?"

"What on Earth are you talking about? Get your filthy hands off of me! For God's sake Aldarich, we're in public!"

"Dylan just informed me that you're going to have a baby!" He squeaked.

Sonja looked at him like he had turned into a message lizard. She pushed him off of her and then turned her attention to Deryn.

"What did you tell him?" He growled, her eyes narrowed and face darkened.

Deryn gulped. "Well, I umm….I assumed with the way you've been behaving ma'am, that you've probably got a bun in the oven. And well, it couldn't possibly be with your husband."

To her credit, Sonja Bauer did not flinch. It looked like she honestly had never considered the possibility of a pregnancy. But after a short moment of weighing the circumstances, realization dawned on her.

"What are we going to do?" She asked Aldarich. Her eyes were tearing up again with fear.

"The first thing we're going to do is tell my brother!" Aldarich said cheerily. "Miss Sharp, I am going to write you another letter. This time make sure it gets to Vincent Volger, and nobody else!"

Deryn grinned and clicked her heels while giving the man a salute.

"I'd be delighted to, sir!" She said. Finally, she'd get back on the _Leviathan _again!


	7. Chapter 7

Lilit was proving to be better company than before. Now that Alek was allowed outside of the anarchist warehouse the girl had become easy to talk to if not, dare he say it, pleasant. She walked him through the streets of Istanbul while pointing out important buildings and landmarks. It was a beautiful day and Alek was a little disappointed when they arrived at the hotel because he didn't want to be indoors again.

He had chosen the Hotel Sophia because it would be an easy way to communicate with Volger where he would be staying. It hurt to think of his mother's name every time the hotel was spoken but he needed an easy landmark for his men to find him. Now all he had to figure out was how to get the message to Volger on the _Leviathan. _

At the front desk Alek requested a modest room with only three bed chambers and two toilets. He didn't want to order something fancy or else someone may recognize him. With a smile from the hotel manager Alek escorted Lilit onto one of the elevators across the hall. The girl was happily discussing her favorite model of a stormwalker when someone rudely interrupted her by barging through the elevator doors as they were closing.

"Nice weather we're having." The person said loudly in English. He was holding a newspaper over his face but that didn't stop Alek from recognizing him.

"How…but…you?" Alek stumbled, his eyes wide in disbelief.

"D-Y-L-A-N." The midshipman said while pointing to himself, "In case you have forgotten."

"Yes! Of course! Godswounds Dylan, how ever did you find me?"

"T'was a good spell of luck actually," Dylan grinned. "I was walking across the way and I saw you so I thought I'd drop by for a visit."

Alek was happy to see his friend, but he couldn't help looking at Dylan in a different light. He had never realized before how Dylan stood with one hip held higher. It was also weird how Dylan's jacket was so well tailored to fit him, the pockets sewn dramatically over his abdomen instead of his chest like they had purposefully been put there to deemphasize something.

However, Dylan was still a few inches taller than Alek with strong shoulders and powerful eyes. Lovely blue colored powerful eyes. Alek looked away in annoyance and shook his head.

"Do you know this girl?" Dylan asked suddenly, pointing to Lilit.

"Ah yes!" Alek said, happy to change his attention to something else. "This is Lilit, her family is part of the revolutionary groups in the city that oppose the Sultan.

"HUH!" Dylan gave the girl scowl.

"We'll discuss the details later." Alek said as the elevator came to a stop.

The elevator chimed as they approached their floor. Alek led the group to the door of his room and opened it with the key he was given at the front desk. The other two pushed past him quickly to get a good look at the suite, their jaws dropped in amazement.

"God's Blisters Alek, did you have to get an entire house!" Dylan exclaimed. His head was lifted to examine the chandelier while Lilit had run to the balcony to get a view of the street below.

Alek ignored his comments and made to open the bag he was carrying but Bovril, who had been inside, jumped out before he was done unzipping it. Alek tried to catch the animal but he evaded his fingers and dashed across the room and up Dylan's leg and torso before sitting proudly on the boy's shoulder.

Dylan stared at the animal and then back at Alek in confusion.

"It's one of the fabrications that were in the eggs Dr. Barlow had." Alek explained. Dylan nodded and scratched the creature on the head.

"Aye, the Perspicacious Loris. She told me about it before I left the ship." He said. Alek frowned.

"I'm afraid that word is beyond my English." He stated. Dylan nodded and tried to pry Bovril off his shoulder.

"Beyond mine too." He commented.

"Barking Spiders!" Said the Perspicacious Loris.

Dylan was so shocked he tried to throw the animal off of him but Bovril had his claws sunk into the boy's jacket and would not let go.

"IT TALKS!" He babbled.

"_Mr. _Sharp!" Bovril replied.

"Does it….How in the bloody hell does the thing know MY name?"

Alek laughed. "It appears that Bovril must have been listening while it was in the egg. I think it recognizes your voice."

Dylan didn't seem at all happy about that statement. "Hang on, did you give the beastie a name?"

"Well….." Alek scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. Luckily Lilit seemed to understand English and joined the conversation.

"We had to call it something," She said, "It seemed to need a proper name, especially with Aleksander calling it 'the creature' all the time."

"That's ridiculous!" Dylan snapped at the girl rudely, "You can't name a fabrication! If you do you can become attached to it and won't be able to use it for its purpose."

"Why on Earth would I want to _use_ it?" Lilit crossed over to Dylan and scooped Bovril into her arms with ease. "It's a living creature, not a tool!"

Dylan laughed. "Aye lassie, we wouldn't want that! God forbid the animal sprung metal arms and became some sort of Clanker tool."

Surprisingly Lilit didn't yell at Dylan or answer him with a smart insult. Instead she blushed crimson and walked away almost nervously.

Dylan didn't pay any notice and began shuffling around in his pockets for something.

"Ah, here it is! I want to show you something too, Alek." He unfolded a small bit of thin paper that looked like toilet tissue. However when he walked closer Alek could see writing typed onto it.

"What is it?" Alek asked as the boy handed it to him.

"A message for Count Volger." Dylan said proudly. "I was supposed to deliver it to him directly but then I bumped into you on my way there. Truth be told, I'd really like to know what it says before I give it to him."

Alek looked down at the little message. It was in German so Dylan couldn't read it himself. He thought it was funny that the message was typed on such thin paper. He cringed when he thought of getting a type writer to cooperate with tissue paper.

"It says:

_Vincent,_

_ I hope this note finds you well. I realize it's been years since we've last met and I'd really like to catch up on old times. Please send word back with the midshipman and we can discuss on how to get you off of that blasted airship. _

_ Best wishes,_

_ Aldarich."_

Alek finished reading the note with wide eyes and a whispery voice.

_Aldarich? _He thought, _The Aldarich Volger? It couldn't be, could it?_

"Dylan, where on Earth did you get this!"

"Classified information your highness, I can't tell you that." He snatched the letter out of Alek's hands with a grin.

Alek scowled. "I know it's from Volger's brother, Dylan, I have heard of the man before."

Dylan seemed a bit surprised by that. "Really? He didn't mention you."

"YOU MET HIM!" Alek almost wet his pants again he was so exited. "Dylan, do you even know who you're talking about?"

Clearly he didn't. He was giving Alek a very confused look.

"Aldarich Volger is the most famous assassin of his time! The army used him for all sorts of military sieges. One time he killed seven men all by himself with one bullet! And not just any men, mind you, but Russian Spies! He's the best fencer on this side of the Mediterranean and he's infamously known as the Silver Devil!"

Dylan didn't seem at all impressed. "Really?" He asked. "I would think they'd call him the Red Devil because of his beard."

"Arghhhh, DYLAN! This man is very important and you take his letter to me first when you were supposed to give it to the Count!"

"Well, he didn't seem that important to me. He's a bit of a slob and he smokes like a chimney plus he's a one of a kind Casanova if you know what I mean."

Alek just glared at him hoping to convey his anger to the other boy. Dylan didn't get it though and continued to talk about Aldarich Volger like he was common riffraff.

"You wouldn't believe it but Aldarich teamed up with Bauer's wife in order to break you Clankers free of the airship. And by teamed up I mean coupled up and bumped uglies. Now she's sporting a babe in her tummy all thanks to your mighty assassin friend."

Alek gawked at Dylan's crude way of saying things but still managed to one up his friend.

"I don't care about that!" He retorted. "You deliberately had me translate his message when he obviously didn't want you to read it! You can't do that Dylan! When people trust you to do something for them you are supposed to uphold that trust. Just like you aren't supposed to lie Dylan! Right? You would never tell a lie, would you?"

Dylan was speechless after Alek's rant. His pretty big eyes were even bigger than usual he was so stunned. Alek realized the other boy wasn't going to answer him, and why should he. Dylan hadn't been lying to him. Alek took a deep breath and reminded himself that he didn't believe a single word out of Eddie Malone's frog.

"I'm sorry Dylan, I didn't mean to yell."

Dylan gulped and shook his head with a nervous smile. "S'allright" He mumbled.

"No, I shouldn't have said that. I really do appreciate you coming here and I'm glad you found me."

Dylan's ears and cheeks turned pink.. "Not a problem, Alek."

"I hate to say this but I need to ask you a favor."

Dylan nodded. "Anything, what is it?"

"While you're giving this note to the Count do you think you could tell him where I'm staying? The hotel has the same name as my mother. He'll know it when you tell him."

Dylan raised his shoulders and stood straight while giving Alek a salute. "Yes sir!" He beamed.

"Hurry up and get to it, solider!" Alek mocked. The boy scooted out of the room but not before turning and giving Alek a wink.

"He sure is an interesting fellow." Lilit said in German as soon as Dylan was gone.

"I'll say." Alek responded. "Although most of the Darwinists are a bit more off-putting than Dylan."

Lilit smiled to herself and began to play with her long braids, weaving them in and out of her fingers.

"How old is he?" She asked without looking Alek in the eye.

"Dylan? I don't know, he has to be at least sixteen to be in the airforce."

"Sixteen. That makes him, at most, two years younger than me." She mumbled. Alek could tell she wasn't saying it to anyone in particular, just bouncing ideas off in her head.

He grinned at her and shook his head slowly with a sigh. "I wouldn't grow too fond of him if I were you. The boy has an obsession with flying and he won't stay in one place for long."

She looked up at him and blushed, suddenly aware of her obvious fascination with the young midshipman.

"Do you think he won't come back?"

Alek frowned. He hadn't considered that Dylan might return to the _Leviathan _forever after delivering the message to Volger.

At that moment there was a high pitched yelp from the hallway that sounded unmistakably like Dylan's voice. Lilit and Alek dashed out of the room to find the midhipman falling out of the elevator, his face white as a ghost.

"Good heavens Dylan, what happened?" Alek helped the boy to his feet.

"The…the…elevator. It opened and….dead body!" Dylan pointed in fright at the now open elevator in front of him while stumbling into Alek's shoulder. Lilit grabbed him away from Alek and embraced him in a sideways hug and nodded to Alek to check the elevator.

Slowly, Alek inched toward the open elevator and peered inside the vacant space. A man lay face down on the floor, a puddle of dark blood gently flowing away from his head. Alek shivered and took a huge breath and held it before entering the elevator to examine the body closer. With bravery he didn't think he had, he flipped the man over to see his face. Alek let his breath go in a gasp. The man was Hans Bauer.

His eyes were half shut and there wasn't any sign that he had been in a fight besides the deep gash across his jugular. Alek gently removed his coat and laid it over the man's face. Sadly he stood and crossed himself before exiting the elevator.

Dylan and Lilit had crumpled to the floor with him in her lap quivering and biting his nails.

"It's Bauer, isn't it!" Dylan said, his voice high and shrill.

Alek could only nod.

"But why?" Lilit asked. "Why kill a man in an elevator?"

Alek was thinking the exact same thing. This wasn't the first man Alek had ties to who had died with a gash to the neck. Someone was killing these people on purpose, and Alek had a hunch as to who it might be.

"Inside. NOW!" He ordered the others.

"Bauer." Said Bovril from the floor. Alek hadn't realized that the creature had followed them out in the hall. He scooped up the Loris and led the other two back into his suite and then shut and locked the door behind him.

"We can't leave this room." Alek said, suddenly taking charge of the situation. "Anyone could be downstairs waiting for us, so for the time being, we have to stay here."

Dylan, suddenly calm., brushed himself off and adjusted his coat. "We can't stay here forever Alek. Whoever did this probably doesn't want to kill us directly, they just want to scare us. If they wanted us dead they could have easily knocked the clart out of us while we were in the elevator before."

He had a point, although it didn't make much sense.

"Obviously it's Aldarich." Alek whispered. "You just said that the man got Bauer's wife pregnant."

Dylan frowned. "I don't think so, he didn't seem the type."

"DIDN'T SEEM THE TYPE!" Alek shouted then quickly quieted his voice. "Dylan, the man's an assassin!"

"Whatever the case we're going to need to get help." Lilit interrupted.

"Aye, but from whom?" Dylan asked.

"You just said that the assassin has a brother who you're supposed to be sending a letter to. Perhaps the brother will know what to do?"

Alek nodded. "Yes, we'll need to contact the Wildcount."

"Right." Dylan said. "So I'll take the note to the _Leviathan_ and give it to Volger and tell him everything."

"WHAT? Dylan, NO! It's not safe!"

"Well, it's certainly safer than sitting here and waiting for the sodding bastard to come and murder us. Think about it Alek. If it is Aldarich, he wanted me to take the note to Volger in the first place. He isn't going to kill me for delivering a message."

Alek gave Dylan a nasty expression. "It's a very bad idea!"

"We don't have any choice!"

There was a pause as Alek considered there situation. Dylan was the one who knew Aldarich the best, and he probably had a friendship with the man. Alek and Lilit would stay in the hotel and wait for Dylan to get back. It was the safest thing they could do.

"Fine, but there's something else you should know. Bauer isn't the first man to die like this."

Both Dylan and Lilit raised their eyebrows.

"What are you talking about Alek?"

"I'm just saying that whatever is going on isn't an accident. We're in the middle of something big here, and I think it has to do with me."

There was a long pause before Alek heard a chime from the hallway. The elevator was going down to the first floor.


	8. Chapter 8

"I need to get back on board," Deryn said. "It's important!"

The man behind the door narrowed his eyes before responding.

"And you are?" He asked

"Midshipman Dylan Sharp. I'm one of the crew members on this ship, in case you couldn't tell!" She pointed to her uniform in hope to emphasize the obvious.

"Captain's orders are not to let anyone off or on the ship." The man said stubbornly.

Deryn groaned and stomped her foot. "I need to get on! It's a barking emergency you sod!"

"What seems to be the matter?" Said someone from behind the doorman. Deryn recognized the voice as Dr. Barlow.

"Everything is under control ma'am. If you could step away from…"

"It doesn't sound like it's under control to me." Barlow said while pushing the man away from the half opened ship door. "Dylan, I am delighted that you have shown up again. It's been what, five days? Poor Tazza is desperately in need of a walk."

Deryn was about to point out that walking the Thylacine was the least of her problems but Dr. Barlow had yanked her inside of the airship before she could speak.

"Thankyou for your help." The boffin said to the doorman as she pulled Deryn down the hallway and up a flight of steps.

"Dr. Barlow, I need to talk to Volger, could you let go of me? NOW!"

"I'm sure whatever it is can wait for a bit…"

"NO! I mean, I'm sorry ma'am but it's an emergency. Alek is in danger."

Finally the doctor seemed to hear what Deryn was saying and stopped.

"What happened, Mr. Sharp?"

"It's a long story ma'am, but there's an assassin that could be after Alek right now! So if you could give me my barking arm back, I need to talk to the Count right now!"

Fortunately the woman didn't ask any more questions and let Deryn go. Together they turned around and headed toward the Wildcount's state room.

Volger was having tea and crumpets while reading the paper when Deryn charged into his room.

"_Mr._Sharp, so good of you to come back to the ship. I trust that you are doing well?"

Deryn ignored her desire to yell at the man and instead took a deep breath before explaining everything that had happened. She described the note she had received under her door five days ago and how it had led her to meeting with Aldarich at a local pub. She also mentioned how the man kidnapped her and insisted on using her to help get the Clankers off the _Leviathan. _When she got to the part about Bauer's wife she found herself skipping the detail of the pregnancy and instead discussed how the woman's husband had died and how Alek was trapped in a hotel waiting for her to get back with the Count in tow.

"and not only should he be scared because Bauer's dead, but that nosy reporter from America was killed too. Alek said he was even killed in a similar way!"

"Curious." Volger said while scratching his chin. "You say that Aldarich put a letter underneath your stateroom door?"

Deryn nodded. "Yes, that one was the one in English. He gave me another one in German to give to you." She shoved her hand into her pocket to retrieve the crumpled slip of paper and handed it to the Count.

"Even more curious." Volger said while reading the note.

"If I may, Vincent." Interrupted Dr. Barlow, "is your brother is in fact someone who would harm Aleksander? He is Austrian, isn't he?"

Volger didn't answer her. Instead he continued to examine the letter, flipping it over and over in his hands as if looking for more to read.

"Very curious." He mumbled to himself every few seconds. Deryn began tapping her foot impatiently.

"Beg your pardon, but what in the blazes is so barking curious?" She finally blurted.

Volger took a long pause and looked Deryn in the eye.

"I just find it incredibly strange that Aldarich would be sending me a note now when he has been dead and buried for nearly twenty three years."

Deryn's mouth dropped. "But…but that isn't possible, I just spoke with him this morning!"

"I'm afraid that I would know my own brother better than you would, _Mr. _Sharp. And I find it hard for you to have spoken with him when the last time I saw him he had a bullet through his forehead." He stood and handed Deryn back the note. "Although I am glad you brought this to my attention. Whoever wrote this note is trying to look like my brother for unworthy reasons. My guess would be that he is trying to kill the young prince."

Deryn was speechless. Not only had she been fooled by whom she thought was Volger's brother, but things were even more dangerous now than they had been before. Had the man really been Aldarich then there was a good chance that he would not want to hurt Alek, but now, who knew who the stranger could be.

"He's probably someone working for the Germans. Perhaps a spy or even a revolutionist." Dr. Barlow said.

"Excellent deduction, Nora, I couldn't have said it better myself. We're going to have to find him and stop him. Where exactly did you say you met the man, Sharp?"

"The _Yellowtide_. But is that really important?"

"It could be. What did the man look like?"

"I don't know...um...he had a red beard and darkish hair and sort of shortish...he looked a bit like you...blisters, why does it even matter anyways!"

"A lot can be told by a man's appearance."

Deryn was sick of them sitting around asking questions, Alek was in danger. Plus it was very odd that they were both on first name bases. She began to head for the door.

"You two can sit here and dawdle all night but I have to warn Alek!" She shouted. Two seconds later she was out the cabin door and back down the hallway. She passed the confused door man who had stopped her before and marched outside into the streets of the city. Behind her she could hear the frantic yells of Dr. Barlow and the Count but she ignored them. From what she could tell they were following her as she had planned. Soon they would all be back at the hotel with no more wasted time talking.

Alek had made her wait until evening before she had been allowed to leave the hotel in the first place, so by now it was dark outside. Deryn turned down what she thought was a familiar street and began to run. Three minutes or so later, she realized she couldn't hear the others yelling anymore. Slowing down to look behind her, she noticed she was completely alone on the narrow brick road. The buildings around her were empty and eerie with broken windows and boarded up doors. She must have taken a wrong turn during her run and now was in a deserted street and completely lost.

_Dummkopf! How could you get lost now you ninny! _She thought to herself. She stopped walking to catch her breath and consider what to do next.

Footsteps sounded behind her and Deryn turned hoping to see Dr. Barlow or the Count, instead she was greeted by a tall dark figure.

"ummm Excuse me," She asked the person in black, "could you tell me where I am? I need to get to the Hotel Sophia." The figure didn't answer her, only stood in silence. Deryn stepped a bit closer to try and see the person's face when something from behind grabbed her by the collar and yanked her off her feet.

She saw the glint of the knife before it came to her throat and reached down to stop it. Sharp pain unfolded from her palms when she grabbed the blade and tried to push it away from her. She screamed and kicked but the person from behind had an arm around her waist and she couldn't escape. With all her might she continued to push at the knife but the hand holding it was continuing to push it toward her neck. Deeper and deeper the blade cut into her palms until Deryn thought her hands would cut in half. She continued to scream, her eyes frantically scanning the street for anything that may help her. Terror seized her when she saw the dark figure she had talked to a moment before still standing in front of her, motionless.

"PLEASE!" She begged the tall person in black, "HELP ME!" Slowly the man, she assumed it was a man, walked toward her with its arms outstretched. In its hands was a dirty cloth that Deryn could barely make out in the twilight of the street. She found that she no longer had to push at the knife because her attacker had let go of it. Instead he had her pinned to the ground with both hands. She tried to scream again but the dirty cloth was now over her face. Gasping from the scream she breathed in chemical fumes from the cloth. The darkness of the street became even darker and Deryn couldn't tell if her eyes were closed or not. In fact, she couldn't even figure out if she was still lying on the ground or not. Where was she again? Outside?

"Goodbye child." Said a soft voice. Deryn somehow knew it was from the dark figure, and she somehow could tell it was female.


	9. Chapter 9

Alek turned around and paced the room again for what probably was the thousandth time. It had been nearly three hours since Dylan had left for the _Leviathan. _The midshipman had sworn he'd be back as soon as possible, and Alek had reluctantly let him go. Now, he was regretting that action immensely.

If Alek had been scared to let Dylan go in the first place, by now he was petrified. Images of his friend with his throat slit and left in an elevator kept reappearing in his mind. It made matters worse that Dylan could be female. What a dummkopf he had been, letting a young woman out on the streets after dark by herself. He could have at least gone with Dylan, but of course that hadn't occurred to him until now! Lord was he an idiot.

"If you keep walking back and forth like that I will have to punch you." Lilit said. She was sitting on the hotel bed pretending to look calm. But Alek wasn't fooled. The girl had probably bitten off her entire thumbnail by now and she was shaking ever so slightly.

"He should be back by now!" Alek said while walking again to the window.

"You've already said that. It's almost midnight Alek, maybe it's time we go looking for him."

"NO! He'll be here, he promised. And we can't leave, it's too dangerous. Besides, if we do then he could come back and we wouldn't be here." He knew it sounded ridiculous, but something inside him thought that any moment Dylan would be knocking on the door with Volger behind him.

Just then a strange scratching noised echoed through the room. Alek exchanged a nervous look with Lilit, realizing that the sound was coming from the balcony beside him.

"Barking spiders!" Came a voice from the balcony. Alek ran to it and opened the sliding doors only to see Bovril perched on the guard rail.

"How did you get outside!" He quickly snatched up the Loris and carried him into the room before slamming the balcony door and locking it.

"He had to go out." Lilit said casually.

"What? WHY?"

"He had to go piss."

Again with the pissing, Alek rolled his eyes and groaned. "Lilit, you can't go opening the doors just so the animal can go to the restroom! It's dangerous!"

"We're on the fourth floor Alek, Bovril can climb up and down the rain gutters but I doubt anyone else could."

"You don't know that!"

"Alek, why don't we get out of there and start looking for Dylan. Waiting around is making you crazy!"

"IT IS NOT!" He shouted.

"Alek, look at you. You've been walking in lines for three hours and staring out the window like a cat. Every time someone walks by outside you have to press your face against the glass like a kid outside a chocolate shop. Hell, you didn't even notice when I let Bovril out you were so preoccupied. I'm worried about him too, but I don't think Dylan's coming back. We need to go find him before things get worse."

"And where exactly would we start looking? This city is huge, Lilit, we would never be able to find him. Nor can we go back to the _Leviathan_, they'll just arrest us."

"Bovril might have an idea." She smiled and pointed to the entrance of the room.

Sure enough the Loris was scratching at the door, desperately trying to open it.

"PLEASE, HELP ME!" Said the creature. Alek and Lilit jumped. The voice was Dylan screaming. "_Mr. _Sharp!" Bovril proclaimed while looking intently at Alek.

"I think he might know where Dylan is!" Lilit squeaked. Alek quickly opened the door and watched Bovril scamper down the hallway.

"Allright, I'll follow Bovril and you stay here in case Dylan shows up."

"But…."

"I know the creature better Lilit, and it isn't safe for a woman to be alone on the streets at night." She scrunched up her nose in disgust but Alek didn't wait for a response. He shut the door in her face while she screamed at him and then dashed after Bovril.

Thankfully the creature avoided the elevators, of which Alek was still terrified of, and headed for the staircase. In a few short seconds they had passed through the hotel lobby and out onto the streets.

People they passed gave them very odd looks and Alek supposed it wasn't every day they saw a boy chasing after a fabrication. Luckily there weren't too many people out this late at night and Alek and Bovril scooted through the alleys of Istanbul easily.

The moon was out, sending rays of glittering light onto the smooth cobblestones of the road. Even the broken dusty windows of the abandoned shops were pretty in the silver glow. Most of the storefronts were abandoned and Alek realized he was in a much seedier area of town. Occasionally he thought he saw faces watching him from the dark corners between the shops, but he didn't stop to look closer.

Bovril ran a lot faster than was expected of such a small creature. Alek had to full out sprint to keep up and even then he was far behind the animal, just barely making out the taill as Bovril slipped around a corner.

Finally the animal came to a sudden halt at the front of a narrow alley between two brick buildings. The creature looked too frightened to walk into the passage, but Alek knew he had to see what was down there.

Delicately, Alek stepped into the dark alleyway. His eyes adjusted to the dimmer light and he made out what looked like a large cloth sack pushed up next to a dumpster.

Alek didn't think. He ran to the sack, opening it with a muffled gasp and a cry.

"Dylan!" Alek shrieked. The boy didn't respond.

Cursing himself for not leaving the hotel sooner, Alek yanked the body of his friend completely out of the bag. There was a lot of blood and Alek immediately lifted Dylan's chin to check for a slit throat.

Dylan's neck was bare and pale as the moonlight. His clothes were soaked in blood, and Alek shivered because it was still warm. Whatever happened to him must have been recently. If he had only been here a few minutes earlier….

Frantically Alek checked the boy over for where the blood had come from. Then he saw Dylan's hands. They were cut up so badly that Alek was surprised that the fingers were still intact. The gauges in Dylan's palms were so deep, he could see the bones.

Trying not to faint, Alek reached again for the boy's throat, hoping to feel a pulse. He pressed his fingers against the smooth skin and was startled with how warm it was. When Alek felt the subtle pumping of Dylan's heart through the skin he started crying with relief. The midshipman's chest was rising and falling as well, a sure sign that he was breathing. He might have been unconscious, but the boy was hanging on for life.

Alek figured someone must have left Dylan here to die, and had he not gotten here any sooner, Alek would have a dead best friend in his arms instead.

Alek stripped off his own shirt to rip up bandages for Dylan's hands. He worked quickly to tie up the wounds before the boy bled to death.

"Don't worry Dylan, you're going to be fine." He mumbled, more to himself than to Dylan. Thankfully the middie was thin as a rail, so Alek had no trouble picking Dylan up and carrying him, piggyback style, back into the street. Bovirl gave him a delighted chirp before running off again, eager to lead Alek back to the hotel.

If people were giving Alek odd looks for carrying a body across the city, none of the looks were as odd as the one he got from the hotel manager.

"I need a doctor!" Alek cried out to him from the front of the reception desk.

"Yes…Yes of course, sir." The manager said. His face had gone nearly green when Alek had walked into the lobby. "I'll see to it right away. If you could please take your…erm….patient back up to your room. I don't want you frightening the rest of the guests."

"Are you mad, man!" Alek blurted. "We don't have time to drag him upstairs. He's hit his head or something and needs attention immediately!" Alek began to hobble over to the couches in the lobby where several confused guests were watching him. He guessed it wasn't usual for an Austrian boy to come walking by with an injured soldier on his back.

"PLEASE SIR!" The manager had rushed out from behind the desk and now blocked Alek's path toward the couches. "I can't have a body in here! Hurry upstairs and I'll call for a doctor as soon as you're out of sight."

The man was sweating profusely and his eyes kept darting back and forth from Alek to the lobby door.

"If I go upstairs, you promise to call a doctor?" Alek growled.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes! Now hurry!" The man gave him a shove toward the elevators. Alek didn't have the energy or the time to argue with him anymore, so he complied and carried Dylan back up to his room.

Lilit must have seen them through the window because she was waiting for Alek when he came off the elevator. Together they gently carried Dylan to the bed.

"What happened?" Lilit asked once Dylan was safely put down.

"I don't know. Somebody attacked Dylan, obviously, and left him by a dumpster in an alley."

"You said Malone was found by a dumpster." Lilit said quietly. Alek had been thinking the same thing, but right now he didn't want to discuss it.

"I think he has a concussion. He didn't wake up at all on the way here and I can't find anything wrong with him except for his hands.

Lilit nodded and climbed onto the bed to examine Dylan's head for a few moments.

"I don't know, there aren't any head wounds. My guess is that he's been drugged. Look at his eyes." She pulled back Dylan's eyelid to show how bloodshot his eyes were and the intense amount of dilation in the pupils. "It's probably chloroform, when inhaled the chemical causes a person to pass out."

Alek bit his lip. He remembered a similar experience when Volger and his men had drugged him to get him out of Prague.

"We'll he be allright?" Alek asked nervously.

"I'm sure he'll be fine by morning." She began to look over the rest of Dylan's body. "We should get him out of these clothes, they're soaked in blood."

Alek cringed as Lilit made to unbutton Dylan's shirt. He still was having doubts about the middie being a girl or not. If Lilit did pull off Dylan's clothes, who knew what they would find beneath the fabric.

"STOP!" Alek jumped onto the bed on the other side of Dylan, pushing Lilit's hands away from buttons. "You can't!"

Lilit seemed a bit surprised by Alek's outburst, but she blushed all the same.

"I know…I shouldn't be looking at him undressed. I supposed you should be doing it. I'll wait in the other room."

"NO!" Alek blanched in horror at the thought of undressing Dylan himself. "That's even worse! You do it, I'll leave!"

"Alek, what are you talking about?"

"I just…I think…its just…there's a strong possibility that Dylan is a girl."

Lilit raised one eyebrow at him and smirked. "Are you serious?"

"You weren't there when Nene brought out the talking frog. You see, Malone had this frog that overheard a conversation Dylan had with Volger. Apparently, he disguised himself as a man for some reason."

"Wait, a talking frog?"

"I know it sounds ridiculous, but there have been other signs as well!"

"Like what?" She gave Alek a good long stare.

"_Mr._ Sharp!" Bovril chimed from the other side of the room.

"LIKE THAT! Do you hear the sarcasm? Bovril listened to the frog too, and he keeps repeating that sentence!"

"I don't know, Alek….:

"You haven't known Dylan for very long Lilit, I have! There are other strange things about him. Like he gets his clothes specially made for him, his voice can be extremely high pitched, he has this bizarre way of standing and sometimes, I swear, he looks at me….oddly."

Lilit stared at Alek for a second, really thinking over what he said before answering. "What do you mean, oddly?"

"I don't know! It's just…it's weird is all!"

"So, you really think Dylan is a girl?"

"Ummm, well, I'm not positive. There are a lot of things about Dylan that outweigh the few things that say he's female. He's a better soldier than I'll ever be and there's the fact that you fancy him."

"I DO NOT!"

"Oh be serious, Lilit. You've been taken with him since the first time you saw him. And there's no way you could have those feelings for a girl!"

Lilit slumped her head downwards and began fiddling with her braids. "I suppose not." She said softly.

"Anyways, whatever Dylan is, I really don't think I want to know. At least not now, not like this. Dylan should tell me face to face."

"But…it would be so easy to find out. Come on, don't you want to take a quick peek?"

Alek thought about taking Dylan's shirt off. His face got hot. "Absolutely not! I would never consider that idea!"

"Sure you wouldn't!" Lilit smirked again. "But if you insist, I guess we don't need to take his clothes off. We don't have anything for him to wear anyways. I mean, you can't even give him your own shirt since you seem to have lost it."

Alek felt his cheeks get even hotter when he noticed that he was bare-chested in front of a girl. He scowled at Lilit.

"Whatever! The bed is already covered in blood anyways so there's no reason to take his bloody clothes off. Just help me fix his hands, they look awful."

Lilit got a basin of hot water and towels as Alek untied the dirty wrappings around Dylan's palms. The cuts looked even worse than before. Alek blanched when they began to bleed again and quickly wrapped them in the hot wet towels. Lilit said that soaking them in hot water would prevent infection, so once the hands stopped bleeding Alek gently lowered them into the basin. He felt his heart droop with guilt as he noticed how delicate and thin Dylan's hands were.

"This is entirely my fault." He said sadly. Lilit looked up from where she was putting a cool towel over Dylan's forehead.

"No it isn't! _You_ didn't torture the poor boy by cutting his hands open! Whoever is at fault for that better prepare for me to rip their arms out of their sockets!"

"But I'm the one who let him go. And if we hadn't waited so long, I could have been there to stop it!"

"Alek! You can't blame yourself for what happened. It was Dylan's idea to leave in the first place and even if you had chased after him you probably would have both been attacked. Now stop beating yourself up. Dylan is going to be fine, you'll see." Alek gave her half a smile. She was right, of course, but that didn't make him feel any better.

Eventually the hot water grew cool and Lilt removed the basin and towels back to the water closet. Together they wrapped Dylan's hands in linen strips and positioned him better on the bed.

"I don't know what's taking that doctor so long to get here!" Alek grumbled.

"What doctor?"

"I asked them to call for a doctor when I got here, but obviously that didn't happen."

"That's strange. You don't think the hotel has something to do with this?"

"Huh?"

"Well….someone had to notice the body in the elevator, but we didn't hear anything or anyone come up here. You would think they'd come up and check on us after that happened. I mean, the elevator had been stopped on our floor for a while when it happened."

"So, you think the murder is connected to Dylan's attack! I was worried that it might be."

Lilit only nodded.

"What are we going to do?" Alek asked her.

"I think it's best if we wait until Dylan wakes up. That probably won't be until morning, so we should try to get some sleep in the meantime. We'll keep him in the middle of the bed between us. Sometimes people thrash a lot as the drug wears off so we should be careful he doesn't roll off the bed."

Alek thought it was strange that Lilit knew so much about drugged people, but he agreed with her and didn't argue. She kicked off her shoes and pulled the covers down before blowing out the lamp and falling asleep.

Alek was amazed that Lilit could sleep at time like this, but pretty soon he found himself closing his eyes and dozing off as well. He heard Dylan give a murmur in his unconsciousness and felt his muscles unclench a bit. The midshipman was going to be allright, he told himself before falling completely asleep.

* * *

><p><em>ALTERNATE ENDING!<em>

BOVRIL: "_Mr. _Sharp!"

ALEK: _"_What is it girl? What happened?"

BOVRIL: "_Mr. _Sharp"

LILIT: "I think she wants you to follow her!"

ALEK: "What is it Bovril? Where's Dylan?"

BOVRIL: "..."

ALEK: "Did Dylan fall in the well?"

BOVRIL: "WOOF!"

LILIT: "Hurry Alek, Dylan's in danger!"

ALEK: "Allright girl, take me to Dylan!"

BOVRIL: "I'm not a dog you idiot!"


	10. Chapter 10

Alek woke up suddenly, sitting straight up in bed like he had been struck by lightening. He wondered what had caused him to stir so abruptly when he heard some strange noises coming from the other room. It sounded like someone was crying.

It was still dark outside so the hotel room was pitch black. He let his eyes adjust to the darkness before examining his surroundings. Lilit was sleeping peacefully on the other side of the bed. The space between them where Dylan had been lying was empty, void of the injured midshipman.

He heard another cry and figured it was coming from the restroom. Dylan must have woken during the night and wandered into water closet without them noticing. Alek sighed with relief that the boy was awake and alive and hurried out of the bed to check on him.

Dylan was stretched out on the bathroom floor, his back leaned up against the sink fixture and his head slumped over to one side. Alek quickly lit the oil lamp, filling the small chamber with a comforting amber glow.

"Dylan? Are you feeling allright? How long have you been in here?" Alek asked. He sat down on the floor beside his friend.

Dylan lifted his head to acknowledge Alek and then wiped his face with his sleeve. Alek could tell he had been crying, but the boy was now biting his lip, obviously trying to hide his tears.

"I'm fine!" Dylan sputtered loudly. He stared at Alek oddly for a moment before turning his head away quickly. "You're not wearing a shirt….I mean, Go back to bed! I told you, I'm fine!"

"You most certainly are not fine." Alek said. He glanced down to Dylan's hands which had been rewrapped in new towels. "Did you change your bandages?" He reached down to look closer, causing the boy to pull back in horror.

"Please Alek, they hurt so much...Don't touch them!" But Alek ignored the boy's cries. The towels were soaked with fresh blood and Alek grabbed Dylan's wrists to get a better look at the damage. He unwrapped the towels gently and then almost dropped Dylan's hands in shock by what was beneath the wrappings.

"DYLAN! What in heaven's name did you do!" A crude looking black thread was stitched sloppily through the wound of the right hand. The other was halfway done, a blunt sewing needle still poking through the palm. Dylan's fingers were blue and cold, completely opposite to the hot flesh of the rest of his hands.

"How am I supposed to work without my hands, Alek? I….I need them…to fly!" The boy choked back a sob.

"What were you thinking? This is ludicrous, where did you even get the needle and thread? They can't be sterile!"

"I….I….*hic* I carry them with me, in case something were to go pear shaped with my….*sniff*…my uniform. BARKING SPIDERS, THAT _HURTS_!"

He tried to pull his hands away but Alek was stronger. The prince pinned Dylan's left wrist down to his own knee as a makeshift workbench. With his fingernails he gently and slowly started to remove the needle and thread.

"I have to get this unsanitary thread out of your skin. The last thing you need is a large infection. God's wounds Dylan, what on earth gave you the idea to do this to yourself?"

A few tears stumbled out of Dylan's eyes and he gradually stopped squirming so Alek could remove the rest of the thread with ease.

"I can't feel my fingers." Dylan said softly. "You know what that means? It means I won't have working fingers for the rest of my bloody life, Alek! The boffins will amputate them as soon as they get a hold of me. I won't be able to work on any airships anymore. You can't climb the rigging or wheel in a crank without your sodding fingers! Hell, I won't even be able to draw again!"

Alek removed the last of the thread and looked into Dylan's eyes. The boy had given up trying not to cry. Large sobs had taken over his body and his face had turned a dark cherry red.

"So you decided to stitch up the wounds in hope that the fingers would regain circulation." Alek said sadly.

"Aye! But it didn't work. It's barking hard to sew correctly when your fingers are numb! And I think I'm pissed drunk, although I don't remember drinking a barking sip!"

Alek had to laugh at that. "You're not drunk, you fool. Whoever did this to you drugged you with chloroform." He said while standing and filling the empty basin again with hot water.

Alek watched Dylan's eyes widen with realization. Now that it was mentioned, Alek could see how inebriated Dylan looked. His eyes flicked back and forth in their sockets and he was swaying slightly where he sat.

"No wonder I can't remember anything past when they cut me up."

Alek kneeled back down next to his friend with the hot water. He gently eased Dylan's scarred palms back into the basin, cringing as the boy winced.

"Do you know who did this to you?" Alek asked with a soft serious tone.

"OUCH, blisters that stings! No. It was too dark. I mean, I know there were two of them. But they were wearing such dark clothing; I couldn't see them at all. I'm sure one of them was a woman, though."

That didn't make any sense. Unless….

"Dylan, you don't think it was Mrs. Bauer do you? I was wondering, it could be possible that she and the Aldarich imposter could be working together. They have a motive for killing Hans Bauer at least."

"NO! They would never do anything that daft! Why would they….." Dylan paused and thought about it longer. In his intoxicated state it was easy to see the gears turning in his head. "But why? I didn't do anything to them!"

"Maybe you knew too much about them." Alek suggested. As soon as he said it he wished he hadn't. The hurt and betrayal were so plain on Dylan's face that it made Alek feel even more guilty.

"How could they….after…I trusted them." More tears began to fall from his crystal blue eyes.

"It's all right Dylan, we'll find them soon. And don't you worry; they are going to answer for their crime. Believe me; I will get back at them for this! And you should hear what Lilit said she'd do to them, it's almost nightmarish."

But Dylan didn't seem to be listening. He lifted his hands out of the water to look at them again.

"Why couldn't they have just killed me like the others? That would have been the kinder thing to do! But NO! Those sodding bastards decided to destroy the rest of my life by maiming me like one of those cats with it's claws cut out. You think I'm going to be able to go on like this! After how much I sacrificed to get on that blasted airship! Barking spiders Alek, do...do me a favor and...*hic*... put me out of my misery! RIGHT NOW! Where's my rigging knife? Slit my throat like they were supposed to in the first place. I'm not worthy….."

"SHUT UP!" Alek smacked his hand over the midshipman's mouth. The tenderness of Dylan's lips against his skin made him start a bit but he did not remove his hand. "How dare you say such things? And in front of me! I can't believe you! God in heaven almighty, do you know how horrified I was when I found you in that sack? They had left you out with the trash like some sort of dead rat they had trapped the night before. Dylan, I was in tears when I realized you were alive. For Christ's sake I don't know what I would have done if I had lost you!" He eventually took his hand from the boy's face and watched Dylan stare at him like a deer trapped in front of a stormwalker. Alek sighed and ran his fingers through his hair before continuing.

"I couldn't stand the idea of losing someone else I cared about. First my parents, then Bauer and now _you_? And all of it would be my fault! Not that you would understand. You're all arranged to take your own life like it were nothing. Try considering how other people feel for once!"

Dylan had stopped crying. His face was pale and expressionless "I'm sorry." He said quietly.

"Well….you should be!"

"I didn't think you cared so much."

Alek could have smacked Dylan upside the head for saying that. He was being so…what was the word…DAFT!

"Of course I care about you, you're my best friend." Alek said, brushing a stray strand of hair off of Dylan's cheek. And without thinking about it any further, Alek pulled Dylan into an embrace. It was awkward and rigid at first, what with the water basin between them and Dylan being caught off guard. But soon Dylan relaxed and wrapped his arms around Alek in return. It was wonderful to finally hold the wounded boy in his arms. He had been so worried about Dylan that he hadn't realized how much he needed the closure of knowing the boy was going to survive. Plus he couldn't help but notice the pleasant touch of the middie's body against his bare chest.

Alek couldn't say how long they sat like that. When Lilit found them later, he and Dylan were both leaning against the sink fixture with their arms loosely draped around one another. Dylan looked like he had dozed off and Alek had gladly let him sleep.

"There's someone at the door who'd like to speak with you." Lilit said suddenly, making Alek jump. He wondered how long she had been standing there, watching.

"Who is it?"

"Some doctor lady from the _Leviathan, _and she has this weird dog with her."

Alek pulled himself gently out of Dylan's grasp, being careful not to wake him up, and made his way back into main room.

"Dr. Barlow?" He asked. The boffin was standing in the doorway examining the hotel room with a disgruntled look.

"Did you have to get such a gigantic suite, Aleksander, it really is quite conspicuous."

"Ummm, well…"

"Oh, never mind. Where's Mr. Sharp? Miss Lilit says he's badly injured."

"_Mr. _Sharp!" Said Bovril from the bed. Dr. Barlow acknowledged the creature with a tip of her bowler hat. Tazza, who had followed the woman in, went over to sniff and lick the fabrication's face.

"I see you have been taking care of the Loris well. Excellent."

Alek shrugged and led the woman back to the bathroom where Dylan was still sleeping on the floor.

"My my, this certainly is worse than I expected." Barlow commented while examining Dylan's palms. "Lucky I brought a leech kit with me."

"Beg your pardon, did you say leech kit?" Alek looked at the doctor apprehensively.

"That I did, Alek. Leeches are excellent blood thinners and can improve circulation better than any common chemical." She replied. To Alek's horror, Barlow dug into the satchel she had been carrying and removed what looked like a regular first aid kit. Well, a first aid kit that was clearly Darwinist. Inside were regular first aid equipment such as gauze and scissors, but there were also various jars and vials of odd looking tentacles, sea shells, eggs and even something that looked like eyeballs. She dug around the box for a minute before settling on a medium sized jar labeled 'sterile leeches'. Alek could have vomited.

She opened the glass jar and removed the leeches one by one with a tweezers, delicately placing each of the ugly black worms onto every individual digit of Dylan's hands.

"We just have to make sure they latch on correctly." She said.

"Yechhhh!" Alek struggled back a gag and left the room so he no longer had to watch. To his surprise Lilit had pushed past him to get a better look.

"Are those things really going to fix his hands?" She questioned.

"Not completely. Dylan will have some minor nerve damage for the rest of his life, but nothing too serious. The worst problem will be the scarring. I'm afraid that it's too late to stitch the wounds, and it looks like you've already tried that and failed." Alek could hear the blame in her tone.

"That was Dylan's idea. He decided to stitch up his hands himself with his own thread. It was quite barbaric looking to say the least." He said from his safe distance in the bedroom.

"Good thing you removed them before they caused an infection." She said, then pulled out a pinch of smelling salts and held them under Dylan's nose, causing the boy to snap his eyes open and scream.

"BARKING SPIDERS!"

"Good morning Mr. Sharp, I'm glad you are with us again. Now normally it is recommended to wait in bed while the leeches are at work, but unfortunately we do not have the privilege of that option at this time. Instead I'm going to have to transport you to a different location. Do you think you can stand up, or should I have Miss Lilit and Aleksander carry you?"

Dylan blinked. Apparently whatever the boffin had just said was too much for his mind to comprehend in it's current state.

"Dr. Barlow? What? When did you get here? Are we back on the ship?"

"Very well then, it appears you have to be carried. That shouldn't be a problem since you really are very unsubstantial. Too bad we don't have time to wash you off first, you're covered in blood. Well, all of you are really. And for heaven's sake, do you think you could bother to put on a shirt, Aleksander? This isn't a harem."

"Come again?" Alek stared at the doctor.

"Here, wear my jacket." Lilit threw him the colorful coat she had on and Alek gratefully slipped into it.

"Hurry now." Dr. Barlow snapped at them. "We don't have time to wait around. I've already wasted enough time trying to find you children. Count Volger has already assisted in finding us a place to escape to. I'll get the Loris if you two could escort Mr. Sharp into the hall."

Lilit and Alek wrapped one of Dylan's arms around each of their necks and helped him walk out to the elevators. Alek had to keep his face straight forward so he didn't catch sight of the leeches still connected to Dylan's fingers.

"Where exactly are we going?" Lilit asked as soon as they entered the elevator.

"Away from the hotel." Barlow answered. "It's too dangerous to keep you here and we cannot return to the _Leviathan_ so The Count has found us a good spot in between where we can stop and catch our bearings."

Alek watched Lilit nod solemnly.

_She's being forced to come with us. _He thought. Technically Lilit could easily escape back to her home if she wanted to. Dr. Barlow may think she had the upper hand over the girl, but Alek knew that wasn't true. Instead Lilit was going with them as a willing hostage. In fact, Lilit could have left any time over the night. Alek really wasn't her prisoner anymore, at least it didn't feel that way.

"Thank you, Lilit." He found himself muttering.

"Huh? What for?"

Alek beamed at her, seeing her for the first time as more than an anarchist's daughter.

"For being here." He said.

She smiled back. "It's nice of you to notice, your highness."

* * *

><p><em>Sorry this took longer than usual to post. This was surprisingly one of the hardest chapters I've written so far. I've easily redone it four times and it still feels choppy. <em>

_Did no one get the Lassie reference last time? I must be really old.  
><em>


	11. Chapter 11

Of all the places in Istanbul, Volger had chosen a bath house as their hiding place. It was a lovely building, Deryn admitted, full of elegant architecture and artwork that must have been centuries old. The Turks were known for their bath houses, and apparently spent hours each day pampering themselves in the elaborate pools and saunas dug out beneath the city. This didn't mean that Deryn was at all happy about their new dwellings. Bath houses were hot, wet, steamy places where people were prone to take their clothes off and bathe; things she was not too keen on doing at the moment. It would have been a delightful place to visit had she not been a girl and had she not been surrounded by hordes of undressed men who didn't know she was a girl.

"NO! I don't need any help!" She screamed at the nude attendant who had come in to check on her. The Turkish man smiled at her pleasantly and bowed before closing the door to her private sauna and leaving her alone.

_Honestly, he must be the fourth one this morning! _She told herself. In Turkey it was perfectly normal for people to pay money to be scrubbed and washed by a complete stranger. To her dismay, Volger had handed her a sack of gold coins that morning which she had been forced to carry around with her for the remainder of the day. To someone else this might have seemed like a generous gesture, but Deryn saw it only as the manipulative scheme of the Count. The attendants could smell gold like a fox hound could sniff out a trail. Every few minutes they came around at her heels, hoping to scrub the grime off her back for a few coins. Deryn had tried paying them to leave her alone, but the men were too honest to do that. As soon as she offered anybody money, they would immediately try to remove her robes and give her a good scrub down.

_Damn Count and his damn sodding bath house! _She thought miserably. It didn't help that her hands were still prickly and sore. Dr. Barlow must have tipped off the bath house attendants that she should soak her palms in some sort of healing tub downstairs. Every few minutes one of them would come up to her, asking in broken English if she would like a dip in the salt bath. When she bluntly refused each of them they would give up for a bit, only to return later with a different person asking the same question.

Other than much more exposure to chubby nude Turkish men then Deryn could ever possibly need, her time at the bath house had been almost uneventful, almost. Over the past two days she had confined herself to the private saunas on the top floors where few people ventured. The small stone brick rooms were dark and musty, reminding her of the inside of a beastie's belly, but they smelled sweetly of spices and flowers that had been pumped into the water. Her favorite sauna that she frequented the most even had a small stain-glass window which she could peer through at the streets two stories down. Here she spent her long hours wrapped tightly in a bath robe and glaring down at the passerby. That was when she had seen someone out on the streets she had never wanted to see again.

On the previous evening, while she had been enjoying a long quiet period with no nasty attendants, her eyes had paused on a familiar figure sitting at a café across the road. Even behind the newspaper he was reading, Deryn recognized the shocking red beard and long wooden pipe of the fake Aldarich Volger. She had been so frightened, she had fallen off the stone bench she had been sitting on and drenched in the pool of hot water beneath it. By the time she had regained herself and shooed away a confused looking bath assistant, the red bearded man was gone.

Deryn couldn't remember the last time she had been so frightened of a single person. Since the night of her injury she hadn't been able to shake the feeling of the man who had pinned her to the ground and sliced open her hands, nor had she been able to forget the woman's voice that had spoken to her. The past two evenings she would wake screaming in the night, hearing that voice over and over:

_Goodbye child. _

Deryn shivered even though the sauna was extremely warm. Blisters, she hadn't been this shook up since Da had died. And even then it had been mainly guilt and sorrow that had kept her awake at night. This was completely different. This was downright bloody fear. Fear of knowing who may have attacked her and fear that they may come at her again.

But Deryn wasn't one to be called a coward. She may be afraid of the red bearded man and Mrs. Bauer, but that didn't mean she was cowering away hidden beneath a bed. No, she was sitting on her stone bench by the stain-glass window, searching for another sight of the man. As soon as she saw him again, she'd be out of the bath house in a flash, running down the streets of Istanbul in a bathrobe and barefoot if she had to. At least that's what she told herself.

A knock on the door of the sauna interrupted her thoughts and Deryn wrapped her robe tighter around herself, preparing to yell at another attendant.

"I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE ME ALONE!"

"Oh… I apologize Dylan, I didn't hear you before." Said a very proper Clanker voice.

"Barking spiders! Alek, is that you?" She quickly stuffed her legs beneath the robe, trying to cover every inch of skin that was visible.

"Yes." Said the prince. He splashed through the hot water wading pool, causing ripples to spread out from his bare feet. The effect created impressive reflections that danced in the candle light on the walls and ceiling. "How are you feeling? Are your hands doing better?" Ever the gentleman, Alek stood until she offered him the space on the bench beside her. She was glad that he wasn't following Turkish protocol and walking around naked. Although he was only wearing a simple bath robe like herself, of which she couldn't complain. She could see a fair amount of his body beneath the damp clinging cotton.

"Dylan, are you all right?" Alek looked at her with worry.

Blisters, she had been staring again. "Fine! My hands are fine!" She said, wiggling her fingers to show him how easy they were to move. "They're a tad numb, but Dr. Barlow says they will probably stay like that forever. How's Bovril?"

"Unfortunately the creature is still terrified of the bath house. We can't figure out if it's due to the water or perhaps even the echoing of the voices in all these stone chambers. Currently he's been staying in the bedrooms downstairs."

Deryn nodded. The bedrooms where everyone slept were kept cool in the basement of the building. Like hotel rooms, the sleeping chambers had been rented out to the group during their stay here.

"How's Lilit?" She said perhaps a bit harshly. "You two seem to be quite chummy lately."

"Chummy? I'm afraid I don't know what that m…."

"It mean's you've become close. Maybe a bit too close."

"Uhhh…yes…I suppose.." Alek nervously rubbed the back of his head with his hand. "I have been meaning to talk to you about that."

Deryn frowned. Alek and Lilit had been inseparable since their time at the hotel. During the evenings when everyone was back in the bedrooms beneath the bath house, Deryn would watch the two chatting together without her. They would often leave to go on walks together throughout the building while she had to stay with Dr. Barlow and be leeched. She hadn't been able to say anything to Alek about it because the boy seemed to be avoiding her. Every time Deryn had tried to corner him into a conversation, he would come up with some excuse as to where he had to go or insist that Lilit be included in their talk.

"If I didn't know better I'd think you were smitten." Deryn said accusingly. She crossed her arms and glared at Alek.

"Smitten? With whom?" Alek almost fell in the water he was so startled. "Oh…you mean Lilit!" He broke into a huge fit of laughter. The loudness of it echoed throughout the tiny chamber making Deryn jump. "Heavens Dylan, you think I have feelings for Lilit of all people! I mean, of course you would think that, who else would I have feelings for? Surely you wouldn't suspect me to be smitten with someone else, because there is no one else to be smitten with! Yes, yes, only Lilit. Because she's a girl and I'm a boy and boys and girls usually like one another." He continued to laugh and giggle while his cheeks had turned almost the color of his hair. Deryn could only stare at him in disbelief. She had never seen Alek act so strangely before. The well spoken prince was never tongue tied nor did he ever babble on like a ninny as he was doing now.

"It's worse than I thought." She turned away from him, hurt and upset.

"What?"

"You're barking batty over Lilit. Look at you, all flustered in the face just over the mentioning of some lass." _Rotten Clanker bastard that you are!_

"God's wounds, you think that….me and Lilit! Heavens no, that's literally absurd!"

Deryn rolled her eyes. "Alek, you just said you had feelings for her."

"I did not! I said that you thought I had feelings for her which I clearly do not."

_LIAR! _ She thought.

"Listen Dylan, it doesn't really matter what I think of her anyways, because the girl is head over heels for you."

It was Deryn's turn to almost fall in the water. "What the hell are you blabbering about!"

Alek nodded happily. "That's one of the reason's I came here to talk to you. She's too nervous to admit it to you herself, but Lilit's been in love with you since the first time she saw you. I thought it was obvious the way she's looking at you all the time, but maybe you never noticed."

"Barking spiders!"

"You honestly didn't know?"

"No you ninny, I had no idea! This doesn't make any barking sense, what does she like me for? I've barely even spoken to her! Truthfully, I've been pretty rude to the poor lass."

Alek began to giggle again. "You really don't know much about love, do you? It has nothing really to do with speaking to her or how kind you are. She fancies you because you're a handsome airman with a thrilling adventurous life."

Clearly Alek knew nothing about what women looked for in men. However…

"Hang on a squick, did you just say you think I'm handsome?"

"Ummm…well yes, I suppose." He lowered his voice. "You have this nice swagger when you walk and, well this may sound slightly awkward, but you have very nice eyes." He was doing that funny thing again where he rubbed the back of his head and neck with one hand while looking away from her. Deryn allowed herself to smile a bit but quickly stopped herself.

"Are you sure she doesn't like you? You're together all the time lately, like a moony couple."

Alek looked offended. "I realize that it may seem that way, Dylan, but it's not because of that. It's more that I've been avoiding you."

He finally made eye contact with her only for Deryn to quickly turn away in pain.

"Aye, I thought you might be."

"It's only because….how do I even begin to say this, I've been having these strange… …feelings about you."

Deryn turned back to him in a squick. She scooted closer to him on the bench, almost so that their legs were touching.

"What kind of feelings?"

"Nothing! God's wounds, never mind! It's too weird, you wouldn't understand." He realized she was closer to him and moved further away.

"I may understand better than you think, Alek." She tried to reach for his hand but he had begun to ruffle his hair again.

"I don't think you would. Besides, I didn't come here to talk to you about that." He said, completely brushing her off. "I came to ask you a favor."

She sighed and crossed her arms again. "Aye, and what would that be?"

"I left something at the Hotel Sophia, do you think you could help me sneak out of here and get it back?"

"And risk getting you killed by those murderers? NO!"

"What if I told you that what I left at the hotel might effect if they're trying to kill me or not?"

She frowned. "What in barking hell would that be?"

He grinned at her, obviously noticing that he had peaked her interest.

"You're going to have to come with me to find out!" He winked.

_Barking Clanker prince! _She thought. _You don't even realize you have me wrapped around your finger._

"Aye. When do we leave, your princeliness?"

"Tonight" He said.


	12. Chapter 12

The stars were out, glinting down from their towering height like faraway lanterns in the distance. To Deryn they seemed brighter than usual. This could be because she had been trapped in the bath house for the previous two nights or because the city felt darker than normal. She pulled her jacket closer around her shoulders from a sudden chill and looked behind her for the umpteenth time to check if someone was following them.

"Could you move a little bit faster?" Alek whispered back at her. He was standing at the end of the road, peering up at the Hotel Sophia. The building looked like a Middle Eastern castle glowing in the night.

"Aye, your princeliness, I'm moving as fast as my legs will carry me." She snarled back at him. Truthfully, she was scared stick straight. Every step she took she was certain she heard another one echo behind her that wasn't her own. Each corner they turned she felt a presence shadowing her movement, like a ghost but more frightening. Any moment the red bearded man would jump out at her, brandishing his knife at her throat. Her hands ached with the memory of her last attack, but she'd dare not say anything to Alek, lest he think of her as the wee cowardly lass she was.

"We should probably avoid the lobby." Alek said once she was beside him. "I'll head for the back of the building and enter through the kitchen. Lilit is already there waiting, so she'll let me in and you can stay outside and stand as lookout."

"Wait a tick, did you say Lilit? Alek you daft sod, you can't trust her!"

Alek gave her an offended sneer. "Lilit is a reliable ally!" He said in a sharp whisper. "I don't know why you've been so against her lately, seeing as how she is so fond of you. But whatever your issue is with her you need to put it aside. We need Lilit ot help us get back up to the hotel room."

Deryn rolled her eyes. Her feelings for Lilit hadn't changed since that afternoon when Alek had confided in her that the anarchist girl had affections for the midshipman. Alek seemed to think the news was just the cat's pajamas, but that only made Deryn angrier.

"I still don't trust her." She grumbled.

Alek ignored her last comment and slid across the street silently before heading around the hotel toward the back, leaving Deryn no choice but to follow him.

They found a window entrance to the kitchen above a pile of crates. Alek commanded Deryn to stand watch there while he leaped up through the window to where Lilit was waiting for him.

Deryn watched them go with her arms crossed and her face twisted in a nasty scowl. She couldn't figure out what irked her more, knowing that Lilit and Alek were going to be alone together in the hotel room, or that Alek had planned it that way and hadn't bothered to tell her in the first place. Knowing Alek, he had probably told Lilit about whatever he had left behind in the hotel room. He had, of course, conveniently refused to share that information with Deryn. Whatever it was that was so barking important she hoped it had been stolen by the hotel maid. That would teach him.

Deryn sighed and turned around to examine the dark courtyard she was standing in. The Hotel Sophia had a delightful little garden behind the building, so standing around wasn't too unbearable. She tried to clear her mind of the negative angry thoughts and instead focused on watching for potential danger.

Something rustled in the garden behind her and once again Deryn felt fear dance around in her stomach. She froze, trying to ignore how much the sounds reminded her of footsteps. Sitting on the ground and wrapping her arms around her knees, Deryn tried to make herself as small as possible.

"Miss Sharp?" Said a pleasant cooing voice. Deryn spun her head around in time to see the false Aldarich Volger emerge from the garden and step next to her. "I've been following you for a while now."

_I noticed. _She wanted to say, but couldn't because her lips had stuck together she was so frightened.

He reached his hand down to her as if to assist in helping her to her feet. Deryn didn't take it, only glared at him wide eyed from behind her knees.

"I'm not going to hurt you, dear, I only need to talk to you for a moment."

She didn't budge.

"I assure you, this won't take very long." He said, still holding out his hand. After half a minute he concluded that she wasn't going to move on her own, so without warning he lifted her from under the arms with ease. "Terribly sorry that it has to come to this, madam, but if you won't cooperate then I'm going to have to use force."

"HELP!" Deryn screamed. Something inside of her clicked and she unfroze from statue position and began to kick. The red bearded man seemed a bit shocked by her reaction but he didn't let go. The kicking didn't faze him either and he had her arms pinned so Deryn did the only thing she could, scream more.

"GET YOUR BARKING HANDS OFF OF ME! ALEK, LILIT, HELP. I'VE BEEN CAPTURED BY A NINNY SISSY PANTS WHO mgffffff." The man clamped his hand over her mouth.

"Now, now, we can't have any more of that, darling." He mumbled calmly. "I promise, I'll have you back in one piece in just…OUCH!" Deryn sunk her teeth into the man's palm causing him to shout out a few colorful words in German. He still wouldn't let go of her. As soon as he got his hand free of her mouth he swung her over his shoulder and began to run away from the hotel. Deryn expected him to drug her with chloroform again, or maybe have at her with a knife, but the man only carried her across the road quickly and into a stuffy looking tavern.

BAM! Deryn was dropped into a wooden bench upside down and had to rearrange herself so she was upright and could see where she was. The tavern was cool in temperature and dark in lighting and mood. The ceiling was low and Deryn felt that they must be in a basement because there weren't any windows. Despite the dankness of the place, the pub was full of people. The tables were all stuffed, several tavern wenches were rushing from person to person with drinks and Deryn noted about half a dozen drunken sailors singing at the bar. With all the mayhem around her she didn't notice the woman sitting across from her at the booth she had been thrown into.

"Sie machen eine Szene!" The woman yelped. Deryn tried to get out of the booth, but the Aldarich imposter was blocking her way.

"It's all right, dearest." Aldarich said politely to the woman. Deryn recognized her as Mrs. Bauer with a scarf over her face and hair. Sonja Bauer sighed in annoyance and gestured for the man to sit down.

"I apologize for him treating you like this," She said to Deryn while removing the scarf around her face to talk better . "But I'm afraid that desperate times call for desperate actions."

Deryn was too busy worrying about when they were going to try to slit her throat again to bother answering.

"Needless to say, Miss Sharp," The man chimed in, "we've been very concerned about you since your disappearance three nights prior. Not only were we upset because the message I had written to my brother was not delivered, but we were worried about your safety."

Deryn scoffed. "Sure you were, you horrid monster!"

"Beg your pardon?" He looked at her blankly. Blisters, the man didn't even have it in him to look ashamed.

"I just doubt you care a rat's arse about my safety is all," She snapped at him.

"My heavens!" Mrs. Bauer gasped. "You have no right to speak to us like that! It's rude enough that you dress so scandalously but your language is absolutely atrocious for a young lady!"

Deryn was about to comment on how she had heard Sonja Bauer swear multiply times in German before, but instead she opened her palms to show the woman her scars.

"How can I believe that you were worried about my safety when it was you who attacked me and messed up my hands like this!"

They both gawked at her.

"What on Earth are you talking about?" Aldarich asked.

"You honestly are still denying it! Barking spiders! You attacked me with that sodding Turkish knife of yours, trying to slit my throat like you did for her husband, and I had to hold the blade off with my bare hands. And then you," She pointed to Sonja, "You went ahead and drugged me with barking chloroform and left me in a sack of rubbish!"

They continued to stare at her, speechless. Deryn pulled her hands back and wrapped her arms around her shoulders to stop herself from the sudden shakes she had developed.

"Dylan, I can't believe you'd think we'd ever do such a thing!" Aldarich finally spoke. His face was filled with shock and hurt. Across the table, Mrs. Bauer had a similar expression, her mouth had fallen open.

"Don't try and look innocent! I know it was you! You're the one's who killed Hans Bauer in that elevator because of the pregnancy and you probably killed that reporter too and now you're after me because I know too much about you sodding bastards!" She was so upset she was almost crying, " And I'm almost positive you're trying to assassinate Prince Aleksander, so stop acting dumb and get on with drugging me again and continuing on with your scheme. Although I don't know how you're going to do that in the middle of a barking pub."

_Just let them try!_ She thought to herself. As soon as one of them came at her with a dirt rag or a knife she would kick the clart out of'em and make a run for the door. She wiped her face and waited, wondering why the pair was still staring at her in silence.

"You poor thing." Mrs. Bauer whispered. She reached out for Deryn's hands and pulled them into her own. Slowly she examined the cuts across her palms. "You really think we did this awful thing to you!"

That was not the reaction Deryn had been expecting. She faced the false Aldarich to see what he was thinking and was astonished by the hurt and sorrow in the man's eyes.

"I'm so sorry that such an atrocity happened to you." He said sadly.

Deryn yanked her hands away from Sonja in fury. „"What do you mean you're sorry!"

"You have to believe us when we say that we didn't do this." The man said.

Deryn looked between the two. Not only did she see immense apology in both their eyes, but there was a deep sadness there as well. Her doubts changed almost instantly and she found herself nodding in belief.

"I don't know why, but I'm beginning to think it wasn't you." She mumbled.

"Excellent!" The bearded man beamed, "Sophie and I were beginning to believe we had lost our trust in you. We still need your help, Miss Sharp." He put his feet up on the table with grace.

"What kind of help?" Deryn asked. "Hang on a squick, did you just say her name was….."

It hit her like a ton of bricks. She glanced closer at the man who had disguised himself as Volger's brother; his red beard, dark burgundy hair and familiar smile. He didn't look familiar because he looked like the Count, he looked familiar because he looked like _ALEK! _

"BARKING SPIDERS! YOU'RE…!"

"Dylan, I beg of you, please keep your voice down!" Said Sonja, or was it _Sophie! _Deryn could see the glint of green in her eyes for the first time. Blisters, these two were the Archduke and Duchess of Austria-Hungary, and Alek's parents to boot!

"BUT…HOW COULD YOU!" The man pulled his feet off the table and snapped his hand over her mouth to stop her from talking.

"Although I'm a bit annoyed that you've discovered our secret, I have to admit I am glad we don't have to keep lying to you."

"She wouldn't have figured it out if you were able to keep your mouth shut!" Sophie grumbled at him.

"However, Miss Sharp, this does complicate things." He removed his hand, allowing Deryn to speak.

"Alek is right across the street!" She was able to make herself whisper. "I can take you to go and see him…."

"That won't be necessary…" He continued, but Sophie interrupted him.

"ALEK'S ACROSS THE STREET! You told me he was still trapped on that airship!" She shrieked at her husband.

"Well dearest," Archduke Franz Ferdinand gave a sheepish and ashamed look. "I was going to tell you he was in the city, but it was safer if you didn't know and…."

"HOW COULD YOU?"

"Darling, please keep your voice down."

"This is the second time you've forbidden me to see my son! The first time, you told me you were going to bring him in that awful praying mantis of yours, and then the thing exploded and it turned out to be her instead!" Sophie snapped. Deryn remembered the woman rescuing her from the collapsed walker. They had told her she'd been rescuing Bauer from the wreckage, but it made more sense that the Duchess would think Alek was trapped inside instead.

"I can't allow you to see Alek, not yet." He sighed. "If he learns that we're alive, his safety will be forfeited. The instant he sees us he'll want to join us, and once that happens his identity will be obvious to anyone who recognizes you and I. No, we need to get him back on the _Leviathan _and away from Constantinople. The sooner the better. This place is covered with Germans and Alek will be safe with the British until the end of the war."

"You won't let me see him until the end of the war!" Deryn saw the woman's face crumble into dismay.

"Why else do you think I've been trying to contact Count Volger as his brother? So he doesn't know it's me and therefore we continue the charade that we were assassinated."

"Well that didn't work." Deryn grumbled.

"What do you mean?" Franz asked.

" Umm, beg your pardon your highness." She said, suddenly realizing she was talking to an Emperor. "Volger's brother has been dead for years. As soon as I told him Aldarich was writing to him from beyond the grave, he knew that you were an imposter. No offense, your majesty, but that's one of the reasons everyone thinks you've been doing these murders."

The Archduke was a bit taken aback by that. "Vincent never mentioned that to me."

"I never trusted that man." Sophie huffed.

"Believe me, there's little of him to trust." Deryn agree. "But back up a tad, you said you faked your own assassinations?" Deryn blurted.

"Not exactly. We were indeed shot at by revolutionaries and someone did attempt to poison us." Franz explained.

"But we thankfully always have our food checked when we are not at home." Sophie finished.

"But why?"

"It was the only way to escape. Europe was bond for war anyways. We figured we should get our family out of the range of fire before it was too late." Franz shrugged like the answer was obvious. Deryn couldn't help but glare at him. Had he still continued to rule as Emperor, then the war may have never started. However, she didn't feel it was her place to say so.

"You really should tell Alek you're alive." Somehow, that was something she felt she had a right to say. "The poor boy's downright miserable without you. He practically blames himself for the whole thing."

The Duke bit his lip and Sophie gave him a horrible scowl.

"You see what you've done to him!" She cried. "He's too young to be shipped off to England by himself!"

"Times of war make children grow up faster." Was all Franz could say.

"ARGGH!" Sophie slammed her fists on the table. "You are terrible! And what about the baby? Do you think Alek would appreciate it if we showed up after this war toting around a little brother or sister he's never met!"

Deryn had forgotten about the babe inside the Archduchess's belly.

"You have to tell him!" She barked at the Duke, "That is, you don't expect me to be able to keep this secret from him?"

"And you aren't keeping any other secrets, are you _Mr. _Sharp." Franz narrowed his eyes at her.

"Not one this barking big!" She snapped back. "I mean, this is a bit different, you're Excellency."

"Franz, please!" Sophie begged. "Let me just say good bye to him before he gets on the airship."

The Duke crossed his arms in silence and wriggled his moustache a bit before taking out his pipe and stuffing it with tobacco.

"Dylan, I trust that you won't tell anyone except for Alek about this." He finally said.

Deryn beamed. "No Sir! Not a peep to anyone else!"

"Good." He lit his pipe and looked at his wife who was now in tears. "Sophie, I'm going to let the midshipman inform Alek of our status. Once he is in the safety of the airship, I'll see what I can do about arranging a short visit."

Sophie answered by leaning across the table and wrapping her arms tightly around the man. She tried to kiss him but the pipe was in the way.

"I wish you would stop smoking that dreadful thing."

"But then you wouldn't find me nearly as handsome." He reached around and gave her a hearty swat on the rump.

"FRANZ!"

"Mr. Sharp, I trust we'll be seeing you soon." He scooted out of the bench to let Deryn out.

"Aye, sir! You can count on me!" She gave him a military salute before rushing out the door in delight.

* * *

><p><em>You may be wondering: Did she plan this shocking plot twist all along?<em>

_Yes, yes indeed I did.  
><em>


	13. Chapter 13

_Really? Nobody figured out the twist ahead of time? I thought it was really stupidly obvious. In case you didn't notice the hints, there were quite a few of them. I'm sure if you went back and read it again you'd see them straight away. _

* * *

><p>The scroll felt lighter than Alek last remembered. Gently he turned it upside down to examine the elaborate wax seal, the only thing between him and the direct decree from the Holy Father and head of the Roman Catholic Church. It should scare him, or at least awe him a bit, but somehow Alek didn't feel the same about the paper roll as he did before. He shifted it to his right hand and closed the door of the hotel kitchen. Lilit was at the window, peering out into the garden behind the building, looking for Dylan.<p>

"He's gone!" She whispered frantically. Alek dashed across the long empty kitchen to the girl's side and looked out into the evening to see for himself. Besides a couple of crickets and clouds of hungry mosquitoes the garden below them was empty of life.

"Well, he couldn't have gone too far." Alek reassured Lilit before stuffing the scroll into his pocket and scurrying out the window. "Dylan where are you?" He said as loud as he dared into the night.

There was no answer.

Lilit shoved past him and ran around the hotel to the street in front. She didn't bother being quiet and started screaming the midshipman's name at the top of her lungs.

"DYLAN! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE! THIS ISN'T FUNNY!"

Alek followed her. "Hush! Be quiet Lilit, you don't want anyone to…"

"DYLAN!" She continued to holler. Alek decided there was no use in trying to calm her down and instead went back to the rear of the building to double check the garden again. Dylan could have fallen asleep in the soft grass next to the pond.

_Or he's been cut to pieces and left in a bag for trash!_ Alek thought. He shook his head to clear it of some very foul images and continued to scan the dark garden.

Something caught Alek's foot and he almost tripped. Searching the ground with his hands he grabbed something flat and small. It was Dylan's sketchpad.

Alek swore to himself. The measly clump of cheap paper was one of Dylan's only prized possessions. Alek had made the mistake before of commenting on how poorly made the book was and had received a vicious scowl from Dylan in response.

_"Da made this book for me. He's the only one who ever liked my drawings much. Nice to know that you don't like them neither!" _

Alek hadn't had a chance to point out that he'd never seen Dylan's drawings and was only commenting on the condition of the book not the artwork. However, Dylan had never brought it up again, nor did Alek ever see him drawing after that.

Not only did the sketchpad bring a sense of unease for that reason, but also because Dylan would never have dropped it unless something had happened to him. More images of Dylan bleeding and dead resurfaced in Alek's mind.

_How could I make the same mistake twice? _He thought. _Dylan could still be a girl!_ And if that was true, Alek had left her alone in the night again with a possible murderer adrift. He really was a daft sod.

"ALEK!" Lilit crashed into him and began shaking his shoulders. "Dylan must've been kidnapped! What'll we do?"

Alek took a deep breath and removed Lilit's hands from his shoulders. "We have two choices. We could go back to the bathhouse and get Barlow and the Count to help us, or we could continue to look around the area and see if Dylan shows up." He tried to sound calm but he knew his voice was shaking.

"That's a brilliant idea! We should go back to the bathhouse for help! Bovril will be able to find him!"

Alek raised one eyebrow. He had to admit that the Loris had come in handy before, but he still felt wary about trusting a fabrication so much.

"Why don't you go back and retrieve Bovril and I'll stay here and continue to look for Dylan."

Thankfully Lilit didn't argue and only nodded before rushing away toward the bathhouse. Alek didn't wait a second longer before running in the opposite direction.

His searched frantically, darting from alley to alley and stopping at every trash pile or suspicious sack of garbage that he passed. Each time he didn't find a sign of his friend he would only become more scared and start to run faster. Eventually the streets started to blur together and Alek's eyes began to see familiar looking buildings. He didn't know how long he'd been at it and his legs were starting to feel like rubber when he noticed he was standing in front of the Hotel Sophia again. Alek stopped to catch his breath and cursed himself for running in circles.

"_Gottes Wunden_!" He shouted. Placing his hands on his knees and leaning over, Alek took several deep breaths to try and stop himself from vomiting, he had run that much.

"Alek?" A soft voice echoed from across the road. His stomach immediately felt better when he established who had spoken.

"DYLAN!"

"Blisters, no need to shout! You'll want to be quiet with all these people about." The boy scampered over and Alek realized the crowd of weary travelers and sailors emptying from the taverns near the hotel. "Barking spiders Alek, you're sweating buckets; you look like you've run fifty miles!" Dylan said while placing a hand on Alek's shoulder.

"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN!" Alek cried. Dylan removed his hand and took a step back, obviously stunned to hear him swear.

"Ummmm. I was waiting for you in the garden, like you asked. I had to run into a pub for a bit, but I came right back." He said sweetly. "And that doesn't matter right now because I have something really important to tell you! You are going to flip out of your skins when you hear this!" Dylan had such a gigantic grin on his face that Alek felt nauseous again. How could he be so ecstatic at a time like this?

"Hear what?'' Alek said coldly. He crossed his arms and sneered.

Dylan didn't notice Alek's glare and continued to babble on like a loon.

"Aye, well, I can't tell you here, there're too many people, and it's a bit of secret! But you just wait, you're in for a bloody shock!"

Dylan grabbed Alek's hand and tried to pull him out of the road but Alek kept his feet planted.

"Don't bother telling me, I already know." He yanked back his hand.

"Huh? What do you mean, you already know? That's not possible! Who told you?" Dylan looked a bit startled but he still had that stupid grin on his face. What on Earth was he so happy about?

"Eddie Malone's frog." Alek said in answer to the question. "And I don't really want to talk about it now!" Rage was pooling in Alek's eyes and throat. He really didn't care if Dylan was a girl anymore. He was too angry at the moment to think about it completely anyways. First off, Dylan had the nerve to bring up this conversation now after lying to Alek for nearly a month. Second, Dylan had been in a bar all this time while Alek had been scouring the streets and terrified that the boy was dead. And now he was just smiling his face off like the whole thing was a big joke.

"WHAT? Malone knew? Barking spiders, that's horrible!" That wiped the grin off his face. "I guess it's kind of good he's dead then so he doesn't have the ability to leak it to the papers."

Alek uncrossed his arms and held them straight down at his sides, his hands clenched into fists.

"LEAK IT TO THE PAPERS! I NEVER….. Dylan, you horrible excuse for a man! And I can't even call you that, because you aren't one! How selfish can you be! Malone is dead and you're happy about it because he won't be writing your secret in the newspaper!" Alek's eyebrows must have been burning off of his face his skin was so hot.

Dylan blinked. "Alek, what are you talking about? This has nothing to do with me. And you really shouldn't be shouting in the street like…."

"ARGHHHH!" Alek stuck his fingers in his hair and pulled. The drunken sailors around them were staring so he finally let Dylan grab his arm and pull him into a secluded area between a parked walker and a tree.

"You really need to tell me what has got your knickers in such a twist, because I honestly have no barking clue!" Dylan whispered angrily.

Alek didn't answer, only glowered.

"Okay, fine, don't talk to me. Just could you tell me how long you've known about your parents?"

Alek froze. "What does this have anything to do with my parents?"

To Alek's grief Dylan broke out again into a wide toothy smile.

"I knew it! You didn't know! They're alive, you lucky bastard! I just spoke with them in the pub. And get this, that man who was pretending to be Aldarich is actually your Da!" Dylan was practically squeaking. He threw his arms around Alek in a tight hug, of which Alek was not at all happy.

"GET OFF OF ME!" Alek screamed. Shocked, Dylan pulled away instantly and looked at Alek in bewilderment.

"But…what…."

"You honestly think I'm going to believe that wretched lie! What kind of a fool do you take me for?"

No response from the middie.

"You hide your true identity from me all this time and then when you realize I already know you try to cover it up with this pitiful mess! How insensitive can you be that you have to bring up my parents death in order to cover your disgusting story!

"But, it's true, I was talking to them…."

"I don't want to hear it!" And without another word Alek stomped off toward the bath house.

He didn't turn around the entire walk back, although he could hear Dylan's gentle footsteps a few meters behind him. He wanted to keep shouting at _the_ _girl, _but he couldn't. The stinging in his eyes wouldn't go away and he was afraid if he continued to talk he would start crying. The last thing he needed was to be seen crying by a girl…._again! _

Alek was a bit ashamed that he had exploded in fury so unexpectedly. But the pent up anger of knowing that Dylan had been lying to him for so long about her true gender had finally gotten the best of him. Twenty minutes ago he still wasn't certain whether Dylan was a girl or not, but now he was sure, and that just made the sting worse. Now the added pain of searching for his lost friend for no reason and the reminder of his parent's death had been the last straw.

He thought he heard a faint sob from behind him and fought the urge to turn around. Girl or not, Dylan was no longer of any concern to future Emperor of Austria-Hungary. He raised his chin in pride and continued to stomp off toward the Turkish bathhouse.


	14. Chapter 14

A sudden gust of wind spattered a flurry of raindrops against the window, causing Deryn to flinch in surprise. The storm had seemed to be quieting down, but this new patch of wind appeared to be changing that. She hugged her knees tighter as a crash of lightening snapped across the sky.

She used to love thunderstorms. The delicate lightening followed by the gigantic booms of thunder were glorious displays of the power of nature. Back at home she would watch the storms all night if she could.

Now she hated them. The lightening was too similar to the horrid Tesla Cannon which had shot down Newkirk's Huxley. Newkirk had thankfully survived but only after she had slid down a rigging chord to rescue his bum from falling into the ocean. Recalling the event made her shiver. It was too similar to what had happened to her father a year ago. Deryn cringed as she remembered the night Da's balloon had caught fire. She rubbed her eyes, trying to erase the image of him flying away into the night, his balloon a blossom of red hot flames.

She turned away from the rainy window and tried once again to lay down on her cot and go to sleep. Little luck of that ever happening. She figured she should be happy to be back aboard the _Leviathan _and sleeping in her own quarters again, but that definitely was not the case. With a sigh she rolled over so she was on her stomach with her face in the pillow, blocking out all lightening flashes. Shoving her hands under the pillow, her numb injured fingers brushed over something cool and metal. It was her father's Medal of Honor. Deryn pulled it out and flipped back over on her side so she could look at it.

The badge was the same as before, bronze in color and a bit worn around the edges. Her eyes flickered to the chair across the room where her own medal was sitting. She couldn't see it because it was buried under a pile of clothing that she had thrown over the thing before tumbling into bed hours ago, but she could remember what it looked like.

Shiny and new, her own Medal of Honor had been pinned onto her chest by Captain Hobbes that afternoon.

"_For honorable actions in the air, we award this to Midshipman Dylan Sharp for his bravery on the night of the Tesla attack."_ The Captain had said. He then smiled at her and raised his hand in a military salute. Ten minutes later, he and Dr. Barlow had assigned her to another mission, one that most certainly would kill her.

_Nice of them to give me a barking medal before they push me off the ship. _She thought. Another lightening flash lit up her room and Deryn noted the glass jar amongst her scattered clothes on the floor. The barnacles inside weren't moving but that didn't mean she wasn't wary of them. Dr. Barlow had described to her how the creatures could eat through steel like a regular crustacean ate algae. Tomorrow morning Deryn would be distributing the fabricated shellfish on a chain barrier that the Germans had built. The destruction of the chain would result in an open passage for some sort of behemoth fabrication to swim through. Deryn wasn't quite sure what the giant fab was to be used for, but she had a feeling it wasn't just an innocent swim.

Another large crash of thunder split the night and Deryn turned over again with a groan. Why did it have to be her that carried off this mission? Certainly they could think of someone else that could spread a few barnacles around. But the decision wasn't up to her. They had picked her to complete the task and she had to follow orders.

Or did she?

Deryn recalled a few other orders she had bent to better suit her needs. No one had told her to follow up on the letter she had gotten from "Volger's Brother". And she probably wasn't supposed to be running around Istanbul at night following Alek around. Not to mention her most blasphemous action of not telling the Captain that Alek was a prince. No, Deryn was definitely not the most obedient soldier in the world.

Thinking about Alek made her head spin. The last time they had spoken was when he accused her of lying to him about his parents. Blisters, was he thick. Why the hell would she ever lie to him?

_You're lying to him about being a girl, you sod, _her conscious rang. Deryn mumbled a curse to herself and pulled the sheets over her head. Stupid Alek and his stupid Clanker stubbornness. Now her last memory of him would be of them fighting.

The Clankers had left the morning after the fight. Volger had insisted that staying in the bathhouse any longer wouldn't amount to anything. Whoever had murdered Bauer and Malone was still in the city, and staying in one spot wasn't safe. Therefore the Austrians had packed up their things and departed without even a glance behind them let alone a goodbye. Deryn had been sleeping when they had left at five in the morning. Dr. Barlow was a bit upset as well at their sudden exit, but she quickly made up for it by planning another secret mission, this time with steel eating mussels.

When another bolt of lightening lit up her room, Deryn decided that there was no point in trying to sleep anymore. Sitting around and thinking about everything was just making her more anxious. It was time to make a new plan for herself.

Staying on the _Leviathan _would mean going on with the mission tomorrow. If she wasn't struck by lightning while swimming in the storm she'd either be killed when descending from the ship on a rope or slain when she was captured by the Germans who were guarding the chain gate. So she had to leave the airship. She hugged herself and took a deep breath. Leaving the _Leviathan _would mean no more flying and would make her a traitor for sure. But she couldn't help thinking that she didn't belong here. She belonged in Istanbul with Alek.

The prince needed her help. There was no way she could leave him out in a city full of commoners with no one but Count Volger to help him. Assuring herself that this was the right thing to do, she rose from her bed and pursed her lips into a whistle to waken the glowworms. Under her cot was her beaten up duffle bag which she pulled out and began stuffing with various clothing articles that were thrown around her room. When her hands passed over the jar of fabricated barnacles, she paused. Lifting the jar to her face, Deryn studied the handful of gray shellfish. They didn't look very extraordinary, yet Dr. Barlow had warned her several times to be very careful with the creatures. Just touching their juices could rot a hole in a person's skin. Deryn shook her head in disbelief before shoving the jar into her bag amongst her socks. Skin rotting metal eating clams could come in handy someday.

Three minutes later all of her belongings had been shoved into the bag. She sat on it to close the flap easier and then whistled again to the glowworms to dim them. She quickly grabbed her uniform from the chair and slipped into it. When she reached for her jacket something small and metal fell out of it. She scrunched up her face in confusion before remembering that she had hidden her Medal of Honor beneath the jacket. The one that had been her father's was at the bottom of her duffle bag, so Deryn felt no need to bring the new one. Instead, she picked it up off the floor and set it on her bed. She could see her false name engraved on the back of the medal in the glowworm light.

_Dylan Sharp_, the medal flashed at her.

"No use in being Dylan anymore," She said more to the medal than to herself, "I'm abandoning ship."

And without another look behind her, Deryn left her cabin room and headed out of the _Leviathan _and into the dark stormy night of Istanbul.


	15. Chapter 15

_On a completely different topic, does anyone want to make a _Leviathan _role play? The one I was in recently died out, and I kind of want to start another one. Let me know if you're interested._

* * *

><p>Alek had rode in many different kinds of walkers. From large dreadnoughts with seven to eight legs, to the two legged stormwalker that had carried him for weeks in flight of the Germans, even a small two foot tall machine that had been one of his toys as a child, Alek had rode in them all. Yet none of them looked or felt anything like the strange contraption he was in currently.<p>

The Turks favored walkers that resembled animals. The one he rode in now was somewhere between a centipede and a cockroach. It had a large bulbous body and hundreds of tiny mechanical legs which helped it scurry down the street.

Klopp had explained that the animal walkers had something to do with religion, but Alek couldn't remember any more details. Even so, the man wasn't here to tell Alek any more about the odd contraption. Klopp and Hoffman were back on the _Leviathan _with Dylan and the rest of the crew. By now they were probably halfway over the Mediterranean on their way back to London. Alek let out a frustrated sigh, wishing he could be back on board the magnificent airbeast instead of trapped in a cramped walker shaped like a giant bug.

Count Volger was sitting in the front seat talking with the driver in fluent Turkish. The language was much more musical and expressive than German or English. He couldn't tell what the two were saying but he could guess that it was about the people outside.

They hadn't been able to move for almost twenty minutes. The taxi cab walker they were riding in was stopped in the street with dozens of other machines, waiting patiently as a crowd of people marched past.

Alek could barely make out the mob of shouting people from the rain spattered window of the walker. They were all wearing red fez caps and many were carrying signs or flags. It wasn't a violent crowd, no one was holding any weapons and the people were walking slowly and calmly. The rain didn't seem to be bothering them at all as they marched purposefully down the street.

"What's happening?" He asked Volger after a few more minutes of waiting..

"Nothing to worry about, boy. Only some protesters rallied up against the _Leviathan._"

Alek frowned and sat up straighter to get a better view out his window.

"I thought the _Leviathan _left yesterday." He said while trying to watch the crowd.

"As did I, but according to our fellow driver here, the ship has been delayed passage for another day."

"Why?" Alek asked while wiping the fog off the glass with his sleeve. Over the top of the crowd Alek could make out a tall metal object, nearly twenty meters tall. It was one of the Turkish walkers as well, this time shaped as an elephant.

"The reason for the airship's overdue stay is unknown." The Count answered. "Although it's clear that the people of Constantinople are not thrilled with its long visit."

Alek could barely make out the movement of the elephant. It had several passengers on top as well as a pilot which seemed to be steering the trunk of the iron beast. The metal creature was gently nudging the crowd away with the trunk, trying to clear a path to walk.

The taxi cab driver said something again in Turkish. Volger nodded before translating for Alek.

"Apparently the elephante has a forerunner from the airship as a passenger. The walker is taking the British vanguard to the royal palace to meet with the Sultan."

Alek squinted up at the passengers again. The elephant had inched a bit closer and Alek thought he could see a few familiar forms on top of the beast.

"I think I see Dr. Barlow up there." Alek pointed to one of the figures who was wearing a very prominent bowler hat. The Count leaned closer to his window and scowled.

"I'm not surprised. That wretched woman always seems to be in the middle of everything."

Alek ignored his fencing instructor's sudden grumpiness and tried to make out the other people on board the elephant.

Dr. Barlow looked like she was in deep conversation with several colorfully dressed Turkish men. Not far from her, Newkirk was standing near the edge of the passenger railing. Alek continued to scan the group of people, trying to make out if Dylan was amongst them. But so far there was no sign of the middie. That was strange. Usually he went everywhere with the lady boffin

"The crowd is getting antsier." Volger commented. Alek agreed with a worried grunt. His eyes passed over the feet of the elephant. For some reason the machine was kicking people violently, unlike the gently trunk nudges before. In response the large mob of people were beginning to scream and rush out of the way of the angry walker.

"I think they're in trouble!" Alek pointed.

Dr. Barlow had risen from her seat and was now beside the pilot at the elephant's head. She looked to be shouting orders at him, but the man was just shaking his head frantically.

Suddenly the elephant made a nasty lurch to the side. Both its left legs had collapsed to its knees while the right legs were still standing straight. This caused the machine to stand lopsided with it passenger deck at an angle.

More screams erupted from the crowd as the elephant stood up again properly. The machine was in full speed now, its engines smoking and gears clicking. Alek gasped as he saw the thing stomp by, trampling whatever innocent bystanders were in its way and herding through the pouring rain like a locomotive.

"We have to help them!" Alek shouted. He began kicking at the door and unfastening the straps holding him to the seat.

"You can't boy!" Volger snarled. "Nothing you can do will make a difference and you can't make yourself seen in public!"

Alek didn't bother responding and with one final kick he pushed open the taxi cab door.

Through the stopped traffic and into the chaotic crowd Alek ran. Rain drops were pouring into his eyes, making it difficult to see, but Alek just kept running. A few people gave him odd looks, obviously questioning why he was running toward the metal killing machine and not away. But Alek kept pushing through them and struggled to catch up with the elephant.

He knew he shouldn't be doing this. Volger and his men has risked enough trying to keep him safe. Now on his way out of Constantinople and toward freedom, Alek had completely turned around and was running toward mayhem and danger.

But he couldn't stop wondering if Dylan was on board the elephant. Surely he cared about Dr. Barlow and Newkirk, but knowing that the midshipman might be pummeling down the road on a giant murderous walker was enough for Alek to throw everything they had worked for to the wind. Dylan could be in danger, and whatever else Dylan was, he was Alek's best friend first.

The walker was nearly a block ahead of him, but Alek could tell that it was slowing down. Dr. Barlow was yelling curse words in German and he couldn't understand why until he made out the other pilots controlling the machine. There was one on each leg, right above the knee joints, and Alek could tell by their flamboyant moustaches and pale porcelain skin that these men were no Turks. They were Germans.

Conveniently forgetting that he was supposed to be hiding from the Germans, Alek dashed forward through the people and made his way next to the walker, which was now trudging at a slow steady pace, splashing through puddles as it passed. For no apparent reason the gigantic beast stopped, its engines whistling with steam. Alek halted as well and watched with wide eyes as the metal contraption gently lowered itself to its knees. The crowd must have noticed as well. Many people were still screaming and running away, others were trying to rescue injured comrades who had been trampled, but there were a few that were sizing up the elephant with fury.

Something whizzed over Alek's head and he turned to see a large stone crash into Newkirk's shoulder. Since the elephant was kneeling, the passengers were closer to the ground and Alek could easily see the shock on Newkirk's face. Unfortunately the crowd also noticed that the passengers were closer.

More rocks were pelted at the small group of riders and Alek made out hundreds of angry screams from the mob. They didn't notice the four German pilots stealing out of their seats, but Alek did. He shoved his way toward one of them and pounced on the man, pinning him instantly to the ground.

"I know who you are!" He shouted at the pilot in German, then began striking him in the face with his fists. The man seemed too startled to fight back and Alek continued to hit him until someone yanked him off.

"Enough, boy!" It was Volger. The Count had grabbed Alek by the ear and hoisted him to his feet in one simple gesture. Alek hollered in pain but Volger continued to pull him back through the crowd and away from the surprised German soldier whom he had attacked.

They had almost cleared the street when a high pitched scream made Volger shudder and stop. Alek spun around and gasped when he looked back at the walker.

Several people from the crowd had climbed into the passenger area. They were shoving men over the railings and punching people left and right. One man had pulled a gun from his jacket and shot the Turkish pilot who had controlled the elephant's trunk. Another had seized Dr. Barlow and was trying to shoot her as well. She was frantically fighting back, screaming at the top of her lungs and kicking with all her might. Newkirk was standing by helplessly, gawking at the entire thing in fear while clutching the railing behind him.

"Damn wretched Darwinists, always screwing everything up." Volger muttered. He shoved Alek onto the ground and turned back toward the elephant. Alek rubbed his sore ear and gaped . The man was unsheathing his fencing saber.

Volger hoisted himself onto the kneeling elephant and began knocking people over with the saber. Alek didn't hesitate and climbed up after him.

He didn't have to do much. Volger easily tackled off at least fifteen men, sending them running and begging for mercy. With a few whacks in the weak areas with the saber, any unarmed man would whither away in fright. However, when Volger approached the men with guns it was a different story.

He blurted something in Turkish, but the man who was hanging on to Dr. Barlow wouldn't budge. Alek could see the fear in the attacker's eyes. He was a middle aged man and slightly on the short side with a full beard and a round belly, not the sort you would expect to own or handle a gun. He watched Volger carefully then spit something in Turkish back at him. Alek noticed him point to the street with his pistol.

"My son!" The man managed to say in German. Alek followed his gesture with a sickening feeling in his gut. Sure enough, the man had been pointing to the trail of dead people that were littering the street behind them. All of them had been killed in the short time that the elephant had been under control by the Germans.

Volger said a few kind words in Turkish to the gunman, and finally he released Dr. Barlow with a sob and retreated from the walker. The man who had shot the Turkish pilot followed him. The streets were practically empty now except for a few shocked souls, and nearly everyone that had been on the elephant were missing or dead. Only Dr. Barlow and Newkirk remained. Alek rushed over to the shocked woman who was sitting on the ground in a flurry of skirts and rain drops.

"Are you hurt madam?" He asked her in English while offering her his hand.

She shook her head and stood silently, brushing herself off.

"I hope you realize the danger we put ourselves in to save you from this mess." The Count snapped at her. He had turned away from her and was sheathing his saber. Alek saw Dr. Barlow flush, and expecting her to lash out at the Count in anger, he backed away. Instead, to his surprise, the woman laughed.

"You can't even look a bit happy to see me alive and well, can you?" She bubbled.

"Well….I…" Volger stuttered, his face red as an apple.

"I am delighted that you came to my rescue. If it hadn't been for you, I most certainly would be dead by now."

Volger didn't reply. He only glared absently at something in the distance.

"Well then, we had best be off. Come, boy." He finally spoke. Alek rolled his eyes, he was getting tired of being called 'boy' all the time.

"You really are going to leave without letting me give you a proper thank you?" She said sadly.

"What on earth are you going on about now?" He growled. The Count had made to leave but she had wrapped her fingers around his wrist and yanked him back toward her. She didn't let him go as she leaned forward and planted a short kiss on the lips.

_Honestly? _Alek thought. _Does she have feelings for the man? Poor thing, he'd never care for a woman like…. Wait… ….NO!_

_EWWWWW!_

"God's wounds man, what are you doing!" Alek screamed.

His fencing instructor had skillfully wrapped his arm around the Doctor's waist and pulled her back to him to kiss her back. They were kissing deeply and passionately and all Alek could do was twist up his face in disgust and try hard not to get sick. Across from him Newkirk was sharing a similar expression. He had a hand to his mouth as if trying to prevent himself from losing his lunch.

After yelling at the couple in both German and English Alek decided that they weren't going to quit any time soon. He couldn't stand near them anymore, it was just too disgusting, so he jumped off the elephant and started examining the damage of the street.

People had already started to come forward through the rain and begin to clean up the mess. Alek steered clear of the bodies and focused on the broken storefronts instead. Throwing stones had ruined many of the shops nearby and Alek watched the sad store owners sweeping up glass shards and reassembling their windows.

Alek walked toward an elderly woman who was trying to lift a large beam of wood which had fallen from a doorframe above her. He was about two meters away, about to offer her a hand when the woman pointed behind him and screamed.

He never got a chance to turn around. Someone had grabbed him from behind, shoved a rag between his teeth so he couldn't yell, and lifted him into a cart that had appeared from nowhere.

There were four men. Two of them shoved Alek to the floor of the wooden cart and tied his arms behind him. Another was at the front of the cart, whipping a horse into a gallop and riding them away. The fourth was peering down at him, his face looked strangely familiar.

"So, you must be the young prince everyone's been looking for." The man said in perfect German. Alek blanched. It was the pilot from the elephant's leg, the one he had tackled and punched in the face.

"Too bad they want you alive." He smiled, he had two black eyes from where Alek had hit him, "I would have been happy to deliver your body to them instead."

He blinked away more rain drops.

_Blasted Count and his awful kissing! _ He thought.


	16. Chapter 16

_Well then, sorry it has been so long since my last posting. I'm moving this week and things have been chaotic! But thanks for sticking by and continuing to read and review, I appreciate it! _

* * *

><p>The handcuffs dug into his wrists like the rope of a noose digging into the skin of a man's neck. Alek tried to move the constricting iron bracelets, but one again he cried out as they rubbed against his raw flesh.<p>

After the bumpy ride through town in a horse drawn carriage, Alek had been thrown into a basement of a deserted building. From what he could tell the place was being used as more of a prison than anything else. The room he had been locked in was only two meters square with a barred door and a small window toward the ceiling facing the outside.

The window was latticed with Middle Eastern cuttouts, but either than that the room was devoid of interest. It looked like it had once been made of colorful brick but that had been painted over years ago. Moonlight trickled in through the window, leaving exotic shaped shadows across the floors and walls. Only the movement of the moonbeams clued Alek to how long he had been there. Nearly eight hours, he guessed.

His stomach gave a nasty growl of hunger and Alek groaned and curled up into a tight ball. He hadn't eaten anything since that morning, skipping lunch due to nerves. He regretted that immensely now.

Occasionally he would hear the Germans outside his door. They only spoke a few quick words to one another before one would leave and one would stay. He guessed they had a guard at the door and the short conversations were spoken when the men switched watch. They didn't seem too concerned that Alek would escape. His handcuffs weren't bolted to the wall, although there was a bar behind him that was likely for that specific purpose.

More often then he'd like, Alek would hear a muffled scream from above followed by a line of German curses. Now and then there was a loud smacking sound that reminded him of fists hitting skin.

Just then another scream carried through the old crumbling walls accompanied by a man pleading for mercy. Not for the first time Alek wondered what sorts of torture were being carried out in the building, and if he would be subject to them soon.

He jammed his hands in his pockets and curled up even tighter. Something flat and warm slipped past his fingers. Confused, he pulled out the object from his pocket, cringing when he recognized Dylan's sketchbook.

He had never seen Dylan's drawings, and he felt awkward looking. Yet Alek opened the book cautiously and began paging through the sketches.

_Godswound's, these are amazing! _He thought. Most were drawings of the airship with messy English scratched next to them. He was impressed with the pages showing different types of knots and ropes, each one labeled carefully with exact steps on how to tie the knots.

Bit by bit the drawings started to encompass more creative subject matter. Sketches of his stormwalker and of the engines on the _Leviathan _caught Alek's attention. The details were perfect and clean. Dylan had a natural talent for capturing things on the first try. There were barely any smudge marks to show erasing.

When Alek flipped to the next page he flinched. It was a drawing of himself hunched over the controls of the _Leviathan's _engines. He didn't think Dylan had ever watched him piloting the airship, but this picture proved he had been spying on him carefully. The portrait depicted him in a way Alek had never seen. His face was smeared with grease, his hair ruffled and sticking up beneath a pilot's cap and goggles. His tongue was sticking out slightly while Alek bit it in concentration. Toward the bottom were a few scribbled words; _'Alek at the controls'. _He smiled.

His father had never allowed him to be pictured in photographs or paintings due to lack of safety, but Alek had always imagined what they might have looked like: pristine and royal with him dressed in his best attire. Dylan's drawing was different. It captured something he didn't think was possible to portray in a picture; his personality.

Alek realized he was blushing slightly and quickly snapped the book shut. Dylan probably never wanted him to see this. Especially since Dylan may be a girl. New ideas popped into his head. Was it weird if a girl was watching you enough to make a perfect portrait of you? Alek's face flushed even more and he shoved the sketchpad back in his pocket in embarrassment.

As if to distract Alek's current thoughts, the door suddenly creaked open, admitting one of the German soldiers that had captured Alek before.

"Good evening, your highness." The man mumbled. He stomped over to Alek's side and deposited a flimsy tray on the floor beside him. "You're dinner. Apologies that it's a bit late, but we aren't used to feeding the prisoners."

The tray contained a small bowl of weak looking stew as well as a stale piece of bread and cup of water. They didn't give him a spoon, but Alek didn't care. He wolfed down the food quickly with his fingers before realizing that the man hadn't left. Instead the German soldier had pulled in a chair and was sitting and watching Alek eat. When Alek continued to stare at him questionably the soldier spoke again.

"Sorry sir, but orders are to accompany you until you finish eating." He said, although he didn't sound at all sorry.

Alek licked his fingers rudely and wiped them on his pants.

"Well, you better get going man, I'm done." He said with a scowl. Alek threw the tray and the dishes toward the guard, letting them clatter loudly in a heap on the floor. The man didn't respond to the action at all. Instead he bent over and began cleaning up the dishes with nothing but a dull bored expression on his face.

As the man was cleaning another figure passed through the door. It was masked and wearing a dark hooded cloak that covered its entire body. In the moonlight Alek couldn't tell if the person was male or female, but the figure was short and skinny.

The German guard didn't hear the figure walk in, for when he stood up and made for the door he jumped in surprise.

"Who the hell are you!" He barked at the person in black. The figure didn't answer. Instead it reached out its arm in a smooth graceful move that would have impressed any high class fencer. In its gloved hand was a small shiny knife. It shone so brightly in the moonlight that Alek had to squint.

Before he could understand what was happening, there was a clatter of the falling tray and the guard was clutching at his throat, blood spurting between his fingers. In seconds he was lying motionless on the ground, a pool of red crimson blossoming beneath him and trickling against the empty food tray he had dropped. Alek's eyes flipped to the knife in the dark figure's hand. There was a hint of red on the edge of the knife even though the masked person hadn't shown any movement since pulling the weapon out.

He tried to scream but his throat had closed up in fear. Kicking against the floor, Alek pushed himself against the wall behind him, wishing he could transport through it.

"Be still child, no need to fret." Came an eerie raspy voice from the dark shape. Alek froze in fright. The voice was in English and Alek thought he recognized the tenor. Could it be a woman beneath the black cloak? He didn't get a chance to find out. As soon as the words were spoken, the figure was gone, leaving Alek alone with the dead guard.

It felt like years before he heard someone crashing down the hallway outside the door.

"Barking Clankers, won't get out of my way until I pummel them! Oye, Alek, are you in here?"

When he heard the midshipman's voice Alek unfroze and stood up.

"Yes! Over here!" He shouted. Two seconds later Dylan slammed into the room, gave a delighted cry and wrapped his arms tightly around Alek's shoulders in a gruff hug.

"Barking spiders is it good to see you!" He beamed. Alek didn't want to say he was glad to see him (or her), he was still angry about the lies Dylan had told him. He would have shoved him away if his hands weren't cuffed, but he couldn't. Instead he enjoyed being held for a moment. He had to admit that a hug was nice after being locked in a basement all night.

"BLOODY HELL!" Dylan pulled out of the embrace and pointed to the floor. "What happened to him?" He gawked at the dead man, his eyes gleaming in the silver moonlight.

"Someone came in and killed him." Alek explained simply. "We don't have time to talk about it. Let's go." With a new sense of urgency and purpose, Alek pushed Dylan toward the door. The middie quickly understood and began to run. Alek followed him out of the room and down a hallway littered with crumbling bricks and passed out soldiers. Alek guessed that Dylan may have knocked these men out, but the blood pools coming off of them were too similar to the dead guard back in the prison vault.

They stumbled up a deteriorating staircase and past a few men with broken noses.

"Oye, these are the blokes that wouldn't let me in!" Dylan stammered on the way up. One of them made a reach for middie's arm but the boy was able to weave himself out of reach. "Hurry, your princeliness, we're almost free!"

Once past the staircase, Dylan lead him through a cavernous room that must have been a fancy hall at one time. It was darker in here due to the tall windows being boarded up, but Alek could make out places where there were clumps of furniture illuminated by dusty lamps. He continued to follow Dylan by the sound of his footsteps until he crashed into something solid and warm.

"OUCH!" Alek fell back on his bottom, hard.

"Alek, where are you?" Dylan cried from further away than Alek would have liked.

"I ran into something, or someone." He said into the darkened room.

"You ran into me, you fool." Said a young woman. Alek instantly placed the voice.

"Lilit?"

"The one and only, now get up!" She helped him to his feet.

"How….how did you find us?" He asked, bewildered.

"I was the one who told Dylan how to get here!" She said, annoyed. "We don't have time to discuss it, let's move."

Alek thought it was bizarre that Lilit would know where he was, but he couldn't stop and think about it. Instead he let her lead him out of the building and into the night air. Dylan was waiting for them outside

"Where now?" He asked Lilit frantically.

"Down the road half a mile and make a left." She responded while taking a glance behind her. "No one should follow us now, so we should be safe."

They sprinted most of the way until Alek was too tired to run anymore. Being cooped up for hours without anything to eat or drink had taken a lot out of him. Reluctantly the other two slowed down to a walk so he could keep up.

"We're here." Lilit said as they reached the warehouse where Alek had stayed before with her family. Both of them helped him up a winding staircase to the top floor of the anarchist building before Alek collapsed on the ground.

"I can't...*gasp*…breathe..*gasp*" He spitted out in whispers.

"I can see that. You've run yourself to the bone you daft ninny." Dylan said with a grin. Although he put a hand on Alek's forehead and twisted his face in worry all the same.

"I'll get him some water." Lilit said. Dylan nodded and watched the girl walk away.

Gradually Alek caught his breath and was able to move himself into a sitting position that was more comfortable. As they waited for Lilit to return, Dylan began to pick at Alek's handcuffs, trying to find a way to open them.

"Damn, they really strapped you into these blasted things." He caught Alek's eye and smiled.

Alek felt his cheeks get red and quickly looked away.

"Yes." Was all he could say.

"I bet Lilit's friends have an axe around here somewhere. Maybe we could cut the chain and at least get that wee part off so…."

"Quiet Dylan, I don't want to hear it." He interrupted.

The midshipman crunched his eyebrows in a sad frown.

"What's wrong?" He mumbled.

"Nothing." Alek retorted.

"No it's not! You're still mad at me, aren't you? Blisters, Alek, I wasn't lying to you before, I really did see your folks. They just didn't want to see you right away because…."

"I told you to be quiet!" Alek shouted, shutting Dylan up. He knew he had no right to be mad at his friend. Dylan had just rescued him from who knew what sort of torture, and here he was yelling at the poor boy. But the fact that Dylan would bring up the lie about his parents again made Alek cringe. Plus, just being around Dylan lately made Alek tense, although he couldn't quite say why.

"As you command, your highness." Dylan mumbled, strangely formal for once.

Lilit came back with the water just then and Dylan stood.

"I'm going to bed." The boy told her. Without waiting for an answer, Dylan walked out of the hallway and toward the bedrooms.

"What's gotten into him?" Lilit asked, looking after the boy in concern.

Alek shrugged. "He's a Darwinist, remember, they're strange at times."

Lilit scowled at him before handing him the water and following the midshipman, leaving Alek alone in the hallway with his thoughts.


	17. Chapter 17

Deryn couldn't say why she left the room. It was more of a rash decision than anything else. She pushed Lilit out of her way, ignoring the lass's worried questioning, and clambered back into the hallway. She didn't look behind her to where Alek was sitting on the floor. Instead, Deryn turned the corner at the end of the hall and followed it to a rickety staircase which lead further into the depth of the building.

Windows flashed past with raindrops splashing down the panes. I reminded her of what happened before. Earlier that day she had sat beneath an awning to shelter her from the storm and watched a parade of people walk by. She remembered a large metal elephant stomping past but not much after that. The crowd had disappeared from view long before she left.

That was the very spot Lilit had found her. How the anarchist girl had tracked her down, Deryn didn't have a clue. But she had convinced Deryn to help her with only a few words:

"_Alek's in trouble! He's been kidnapped!"_

It was evening by then and the rain had stopped. Together they had hurried across town to an abandoned hotel where Alek had been held prisoner. Now, with Alek rescued and everyone safe, Deryn's guilt and anger were beginning to shine through. She walked faster away from the windows so she didn't risk seeing a lightening flash

She realized that running off and pouting like this was the dumbest thing to do. Alek was too thick to notice or care whether she was upset or not. Expecting him to come after her and apologize was daft. The stubborn Clanker was likely to hold a grudge against her until he died.

Deryn sighed and turned another corner. Thinking about it helped her comprehend that she couldn't blame Alek for his anger. The poor boy was still traumatized by his parents' death. The last thing he needed was to hear that the whole thing had been a lie. It made sense that he wouldn't believe her, what proof did she have? Still, it upset her that he would get mad at her and call her a liar so quickly.

A walk around the warehouse was the best thing to do right now. That way she could clear her head and calm down a bit before facing Alek again.

Not paying attention to where she was going, Deryn pushed open a heavy metal door and passed into a large room with a ceiling nearly seventy feet above her head. Perplexed, she stumbled out of the doorway and began to wander around.

The gigantic space was dark. A few gas lamps twinkled from the walls, giving off a delicate glow. Deryn looked up to see the light reflecting off of something tall and huge. Squinting to get a better look, she realized that the lights glinted like reflections off a mirror. Only something metal could create a reflection like that.

But what could be so tall and made of metal? It nearly reached the ceiling, whatever it was. Deryn took a few more precocious steps then gasped. What looked like a gargantuan silver statue stood before her. It reminded her of the enormous sphinxes and statues built by the Pharaohs in Ancient Egypt.

Walking backwards away from the metal statue, she tripped over her own feet and fell on her bum.

"YOWCH!" Deryn yelped loudly. She had slammed down hard on the brick floor, certainly causing a mighty bruise on her rump.

Something moved above her. It looked like the face of the statue had opened up, like there was a door between the mouth and nose. From her position on the floor she thought she saw a person leaning out of the door in the statue's face. Her presumption was proven correct when the person called down to her. Deryn couldn't make out what they said, but it sounded like a warning yell. Whoever was up there must have heard her fall.

Not wanting to get into trouble, she scrambled to her feet and tried to head back the way she came. More cries seemed to come out of the statue in what Deryn thought was Turkish. More lanterns were being lit, but she didn't stop to investigate. Instead, Deryn fumbled in the semi-darkness for an exit.

"_Durdurmak_!" Said someone from in front of her. Deryn stopped short before running into a tall young man in an elegant suit. He looked really familiar, although she couldn't place him. She didn't stay to chat because the man looked angry. Swerving around his body, she passed him in a squick and rushed down a hallway she didn't see before.

Up three flights of stairs and down another, Deryn scampered away from the man in the suit. She was running as fast as she could but he always seemed a few steps behind her. Halfway down a dark hall that stunk of rotted wood, someone jumped in front of her and blocked her way.

"Dylan, STIOP!" The person grabbed her shoulders to pull her to a halt. Deryn looked up to see she was eye to eye with Lilit.

"You know the boy?" Said the man in the suit. He had caught up with her and was now panting at her side. "Is this the one you begged to be saved!" He was spitting the words into Lilit's face causing her to scowl.

"Yes, Marcus. You don't recognize him from before?" Lilit said angrily. "I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. You are dim witted enough to forget a person in a week."

"Wait, what's going on?" Deryn asked. Was this man supposed to know her?

"Nothing to worry about, Dylan. Marcus is just an idiot." Lilit answered. "Now come with me, and no more running away!" She grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the end of the hall. Marcus was left standing by himself, dazed.

"Who was he?" Deryn asked. Lilit didn't answer, only continued to grip her wrist tightly and walk forward. "Where are we going, and do you know about a large metal statue…."

"No time for questions." Lilit mumbled. They scaled one more rickety staircase to what must have been the top floor of the building. Lilit pushed her through a door curtain and into a hot, humid room stuffed with silk furniture, covered lamps and tapestries. They must have been right beneath the roof because Deryn could hear the raindrops pattering overhead.

"Lilit, is that you?" Came a smoky eerie voice from the depths of the room.

"Yes, Nene." Lilit replied. "I brought Dylan here. I think he deserves to hear some answers about what's going on. And personally, I'd like some answers myself!"

"_Mr. _Sharp!" Said a familiar voice. At first Deryn was certain that Count Volger was there, but then she saw Bovril's small form jump out of the darkness and up into her arms.

"Bovril? Hang on squick, how'd _you _get here?" Deryn scratched the creature behind the ears making it purr.

"A very good question _Mr. _Sharp." Said the eerie voice again. "Perhaps that is a good place to start. Lilit, could you inform our friend how the fabrication got here."

Deryn narrowed her eyes and looked at Lilit suspiciously. The girl looked suddenly ashamed and was playing with her braids nervously.

"Ummmm. Well, that's kind of a long story. Heh!" She blushed.

"I like long stories." Deryn shot back. Something shifty was going on here and she was anxious to find out what it was.

"Why don't you offer our guest a seat." Said the voice again. There was a sound like the moving of gears and Deryn saw a bed walk out of the corner of the room and into the light. She rubbed her eyes.

_Blasted Clankers and their loony inventions! _She thought. Bovril sprang out of her hands and leaped onto the bed. A frail little old woman was situated there. Her arms opened to receive Bovril and she chuckled as the creature curled up in her lap.

Lilit pulled up two chairs and gestured for Deryn to sit down before sitting herself.

"Dylan, this is my grandmother, Sylvia. We all call her Nene."

Deryn stood and bowed to the old woman.

"Sit down, child, no need to be so formal. Now I believe Lilit was going to tell us about the abduction of the creature."

Lilit shook in fury. "NENE! Don't accuse me of such nonsense! I didn't abduct Bovril!"

"Then how did it get here?" Deryn asked smugly.

Lilit looked like she was going to pull her braids out she was so nervous. "Alek and his men were in such a rush to leave the bathhouse that they left poor Bovril behind."

Deryn crossed her arms and glared at Lilit. She found it hard to believe that Alek would misplace the fabrication. He may be a bit cracked in the attic, but that didn't mean he was careless.

"Left Bovril behind? Sounds like a load of rubbish to me."

"Whatever!" Lilit cried. "It doesn't really matter. Bovril is here, safe and sound."

That was another valid point. Lilit must have come back to the warehouse with Bovril at some point. Otherwise the creature wouldn't be here.

"Doesn't matter? Not so fast, lassie. You came back home to drop Bovril off with your grandmother, and then later this afternoon you _knew_ Alek had been kidnapped. You also happened to stumble onto where I was. Either you're always in the right place at the right time, or you're a mind reader."

Lilit at least had the grace to look ashamed.

"I guess we both have some explaining to do." Nene smiled. "For what it's worth, Lilit meant well by taking the creature. Aleksander had put the animal in some sort of bag that looked uncomfortable. My granddaughter thought it would be better off with us anyways, and not with someone who would be escaping the city."

Deryn harrumphed and finally sat down in her chair. Nene continued.

"As for knowing where everyone is all the time, that happens to be one of our family trademarks! Being a leader in the revolution is dangerous, and we have to keep tallies on what's going on throughout the city. Let's just say I have plenty of little birds with eyes in the right places."

_So she has spies everywhere. _Deryn thought.

"I know it may look bad to a lay person such as yourself, but I have to keep my family safe."

Deryn scowled. This was definitely shifty business.

"I have to say, Mr. Sharp, that I have been quite impressed with everything I've heard about you."

"And what exactly have you heard?" Deryn asked.

"You're a brave young airman who left the comfort of your ship in order to save your friend. You fight well, you're spirited, quick and quite clever, from what Lilit tells me."

Deryn shot Lilit a nasty look. "Aye, and what does that have to do with anything?"

"It means we want you to join up with us." Lilit shot back.

"WHAT!"

"Think about it, dear." Nene whispered. "You'd be helping a good cause and you'd be able to stay with your prince friend. It's not like you have anywhere else to go. The _Leviathan _already left Istanbul an hour ago. So you're practically marooned in a foreign city."

Deryn narrowed her eyes at the elderly woman. "What do you mean 'stay' with my friend? Is Alek joining your group too? Have you already convinced him to join in? Sorry ma'am, but I have to call bull shit on that one!"

Nene laughed. It was a very loud deep laugh for someone so frail. "You are clever, Mr. Sharp. You're correct in saying that Alek will not be joining our group, at least not by choice. I cannot lie to you, Dylan. Alek is now our captive again. His royal blood and importance to the German's make him a very valuable asset. Therefore, for the benefit of my family and the revolution, I need to keep Alek here as a hostage."

"YOU CAN'T!" Deryn belted. "Alek is a human being. It's not fair to keep him locked up here!"

"I'm afraid that life is not fair, Mr. Sharp. Aleksander's family has aided in the start of this war, and I am hoping that Aleksander will help to end it."

"I was hoping for the same thing myself." Said a voice from the doorway. Deryn flipped around to see Alek standing there, a grim look on his face. "You can keep me here madam," he continued, "but I'm not going to be your regular valuable asset."


	18. Chapter 18

_I apologize that it's taken so long for me to post each chapter. I get the feeling that some of you have even stopped reading this because I was taking too long! Please don't give up on me yet! I just got over a huge clump of writer's block, but it should be smooth sailing from here!_

* * *

><p>It took sixteen men to carry in the pipes, if you could even call them pipes. To Alek they looked like large springs wound so tightly that there was no space between the coils.<p>

_Goodness, those things are gigantic! _He thought to himself as another pipe was carried into the warehouse. The anarchists had been bringing them in all day and into the evening. The pipes were nearly six meters long apiece with a diameter close to the size of a man's waist. He wondered what the springs were being used for, but no one was going through the effort to tell him. Instead, Alek was positioned at the back of the warehouse workroom with Lilit. Together they were bolting down and adjusting one of the foot pieces of the enormous Minotaur walker.

"Are the pipes being used for the stormwalkers?" He asked Lilit. It was probably his fifth question in relation to the pipes, but that didn't mean Lilit was going to give him an answer.

"I don't know." Was all she said. She tightened one of the carriage bolts with the twist of a wrench. Even though his skepticism for Lilit and her family had risen considerably since they had taken him hostage, Alek couldn't help but be amazed with the workmanship of the anarchists. Their walkers were all different models, but the group worked between the machines seamlessly like a factory producing all the same parts. Whatever the long springs were for, he was certain the anarchists planned to use them well.

He took a breath to stand and stretch his back. Kneeling all day to twist bolts in was tiring work. As he lifted his arms above his head and straightened, Alek noticed a familiar shimmer of blond hair in the corner of his eye. Near the entryway of the warehouse, Dylan had joined the next group of sixteen men take in another pipe. Alek smiled when he saw his friend and gave him a hearty yell and a wave.

"Dylan, over here!" He shouted. Lilit dropped her wrench in shock and quickly stood herself.

"Is Dylan here? I didn't notice him before."

Alek gave her a look that clearly read, 'sure you didn't', although he doubted that Lilit noticed. She was too busy being love struck to see anything he did. Alek chuckled under his breath as Lilit stood on tiptoe to get a better view of Dylan. He watched her cheeks redden as the midshipman finished carrying in the pipe and strode over to where Lilit and Alek were working.

"You're Princeliness!" Dylan beamed. "Glad that you're speaking with me again!"

Alek sighed. Although he was still very angry with Dylan lying to him about his parents being alive, it was hard to live in a foreign city without a friend. He probably would never be as close with the midshipman as he was before, but at least he had someone to talk to on occasion.

"Yes, well, don't get your hopes up." He answered rather coldly.

Dylan's face immediately dimmed and Alek could see how tired the boy really looked. He must have been carrying pipes all day.

"Say Dylan," Alek mentioned before the boy turned to leave, " What are those long springs made of?"

Dylan crossed his arms in a scowl, obviously upset. "They're copper." He grumbled.

Alek raised his eyebrows at that. He had figured that the pipes may be a different sort of metal than most construction, but copper was rather surprising. Not only was it very expensive, but copper wasn't the ideal material to work with. It easily tarnished and could become brittle and crack much faster than steel or iron.

"Really?" Alek wondered to himself. "That's fascinating. Thankyou, Mr. Sharp, that'll be all." He dismissed him with a wave of the hand. Dylan sneered one last time before walking back toward the other workmen.

"That was rather rude!" Lilit snapped. "Why have you been treating Dylan like a servant?"

She had a point. Alek had been speaking to Dylan like one of his past butlers.

"It wasn't that rude. I asked him over here nicely, didn't I?"

Lilit crossed her arms and shook her head. "That was just to get his attention. Then you shot him down two seconds later."

Alek frowned. "Dylan and I had a bit of a falling out recently." He said honestly.

Lilit looked startled. "Really, but why? You two are best friends. And he's such a wonderful person; I would think you'd want to…." She didn't continue her speech. Alek could see that she was too busy staring after Dylan to talk. He rolled his eyes. He was glad that Lilit had feeling s for Dylan. The two would make a delightful couple and it proved that Dylan was really a boy, since women don't fall for other women! However, he was getting tired of being around a lovesick girl all the time.

"Lilit, this is getting ridiculous. You obviously are in love with him."

She flushed pink. "SHUT UP!"

"Fine. But I'm just saying that you should probably go talk to him instead of me. My arguments with Dylan are not nearly as important. "

Alek kneeled back on the ground to continue screwing bolts. He thought it was best to leave Lilit to stew on what he just said.

Sure enough, she continued to stand there for a minute before sucking up her courage and crossing the large room to where Dylan was helping put the pipes away.

Alek lifted the corner of his mouth in a half smile. From this distance he could see Lilit stand on tiptoe and tap Dylan on the shoulder. The midshipman finished smashing the copper coil onto a large cart and turned around to glare at Lilit. Even from this faraway Alek could easily make out the snarl on the boy's face.

They seemed to exchange a few pleasantries before Dylan's face finally calmed down and he rewarded Lilit with a grin.

Delighted, Lilit was bouncing on the balls of her feet as she returned to Alek's side after her conversation.

"Well?" Alek asked as she came into hearing range. "What did you two talk about?"

"About you." She said maliciously.

"What?"

"Dylan says you're a clarts for brains loser who needs to get stuffed."

Alek groaned. "You weren't supposed to talk to him about…."

"He also has agreed to join me for dinner!"

Alek was so stunned he dropped the wrench on his foot.

"OUCH!"

"You alright?" She peered over to get a better look.

"I'm fine." He grumbled, even though he could feel a trickle of blood oozing out of his thin pilot's shoes.

"Told you to wear work boots." Lilit said matter-a-factly. "Anyways, you can probably finish the rest of these bolts by yourself, right?"

"Wha….?"

"I have to go get ready!" She chimed.

"Get ready for what?"

"I can't wear this to dinner!" She gestured to her grease covered work clothes. Alek held back a laugh. Lilit had worn even dirtier clothes to dinner last night and had eaten with her elbows on the table and chewed with her mouth open.

_At least I'll be rid of her and her lovesickness! _ He thought. Dismissing Lilit and returning to his work, Alek glanced across the workroom to where Dylan was carrying in another copper coiled pipe. Something about the way Dylan brushed the hair out of his face and the way he laughed at the other men made Alek blush. A feeling of anger, slight but smoldering, roiled in the pit of his stomach. It wasn't the usual anger he felt when he thought about Dylan and how he had lied to him. It was different, and he realized he felt the twinge before when he was talking to Lilit.

He shuddered and looked away when he realized what it could be, jealousy. Aleksander Ferdinand von Hapsburg was jealous. And it wasn't jealousy for Lilit's affection. That he was sure of.

He quickly shook his head to clear his mind and switched his attention back to the copper pipes.

_Why copper? _He wondered again.

Suddenly, someone shouted a phrase in German that made Alek freeze.

"…_definitely electric!" _Stood out like red hot wire. German or not, Alek could've picked out those words from a mile away.

He swore and dropped the wrench again.


	19. Chapter 19

"You're awful quiet, Dylan, is something wrong?"

Deryn looked up from her empty plate and faced Lilit's puzzled expression.

"No…um….I'm fine." She wasn't really though. More like barking miserable. Alek was mad at her and the _Leviathan _was gone. Life had turned into barking hogwash again.

Lilit seemed to pick up on her bad mood. She rested her hand reassuringly on Deryn's shoulder which she quickly brushed away.

"What are you cooking?" She asked Lilit, trying to change the subject.

"A few different things." The girl answered. She walked toward the stove across the room and began stirring one of the large pots. Lilit began to explain the various food items that were in the numerous pots, but Deryn wasn't listening. Instead she had picked up the plate in front of her to examine it better. It was real bone china, something Deryn hadn't ever had the experience of eating off of. Her mother had a few pieces of fine china but they stayed safely locked away in a display cabinet, only to be looked at, never used.

She gently put the plate back down and gasped when she saw the crystal wine glasses and silver cutlery.

"Barking spiders! What's with all the fancy crap?" She sputtered. Lilit stopped what she was doing and gave Deryn a bashful grin.

"I thought you deserved to have a proper dinner for once. It's probably been ages since you've had a good home cooked meal."

_Well that's very true. _Deryn thought. Her eyes passed over to the bubbling pots on the stove and her mouth watered. Whatever Lilit was making surely wasn't a usual proper Scottish dinner, but it still smelled wonderful.

"Sounds marvelous! Is it ready yet?" She lifted her plate expectantly toward Lilit.

Lilit was overjoyed and snatched the plate out of Deryn's hand before emptying a ladle full of steaming food onto it. Deryn happily grabbed it back when she was finished and immediately started eating.

She still couldn't tell what it was, some sort of rice and stew dish with potatoes and creamy golden gravy. It was spicy and exotic tasting, like she had inhaled a mouthful of tea leaves or cinnamon. Certainly not what she was expecting, but definitely delicious. Sucking down the food on her plate, Deryn didn't even notice that Lilit had sat down opposite her until the girl spoke.

"I'm glad you like it!" She gushed.

"Isfth wasthderthisful!" Deryn managed with her mouth full.

"I was a bit worried that you wouldn't like Turkish food, so I made some European dishes as well."

Deryn could only nod between swallows.

"Unfortunately I'm not as good at making those, but maybe you'll like some roast chicken later?"

Finally Deryn was able to take a breath and speak. "Sounds great! I bet Alek will really like that. Something gives me the feeling he's not one to like spicy food. Hope he shows up soon, or else I'll have eaten it all!"

Lilit's face immediately fell. "What makes you think Alek is getting any?" She asked very seriously.

"Ummm… well….." Deryn stuttered. She slowly put down her fork. "You said you were making dinner, so I assumed it was for me and him."

"You assumed wrong!" Lilit barked. Her eyes had narrowed and her lips were trembling.

"Well, what do you expect me to think! Why else would you make so much food? "

Lilit slammed her fists on the table, causing the dishes to clatter. "WHY DO YOU THINK?" She shouted.

By now Deryn had lost her appetite.

"You know what? I just remembered that I have to be somewhere." She began to rise from the table but Lilit wouldn't have any of it and shoved her back into her chair.

"Where do you think you're going? I just made this huge dinner for you so sit down and eat it!"

Deryn didn't know what to say. She bit her lip nervously and picked up her fork again. Delicately she picked at the food in front of her before stabbing a small bit of rice and placing it in her mouth. She chewed it sluggishly while watching Lilit in silence.

They sat there for a few minutes. Deryn continued to chew the same piece of rice and Lilit just sat there with her arms crossed.

Eventually Lilit seemed to calm down. Her arms relaxed and her expression changed to one of sadness instead of anger.

"I'm sorry, Dylan." She muttered. Her eyes were watery and she was staring blankly at the floor. "That was really rude of me."

"S'all right." Deryn whispered, a bit shocked at the change in Lilit's mood.

"It's just that….this dinner was really special to me and…I guess what I'm trying to say is that it hurt my feelings when you suggested that Alek was coming."

"Oh." Said Deryn. This was getting a lot more awkward than she'd like. Looking over she realized for the first time that Lilit was dressed up. The girl was in a elegant red dress with a matching set of golden earrings and bracelets, not to mention she was also wearing makeup. Deryn suddenly felt ashamed of her ragged middie uniform, still dirty from carrying heavy pipes around. But Lilit continued to speak like everything was her fault.

"I forgot that you and Alek are not getting along. No wonder you mentioned him. Is that why you looked so upset earlier?"

Deryn shrugged.

"I can tell that he has been treating you like dirt, although I can't really understand why. Have you tried talking to him?"

Strange as it was to get advice on Alek from Lilit, Deryn couldn't help but want to discuss her problems.

"How can I talk to him when he doesn't want any part of me?" She asked. "He thinks I lied to him, when I didn't. I saved his life and stood up for him against your grandmother and he still hates me!"

Lilit looked worried. "It's really driving you crazy, huh?"

_ Isn't it barking obvious! _She wanted to shout. She didn't though, only nodded.

"Alek can't stay mad at you forever, especially if you didn't do anything wrong. Did you try apologizing?"

"Why should _I_ apologize? Like you just said, I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Yes, but sometimes admitting that we've erred, even if we haven't, is sometimes necessary in order to amend friendships."

Deryn groaned. Lilit was right, she probably should apologize to Alek and let the whole thing go. Even if it meant that Alek would never know that his parents were really alive.

"I don't want to apologize to him, he's being a ninny. But I guess I'm going to have to."

"Good luck." Said Lilit before finally helping herself to some of the food.


	20. Chapter 20

Deryn didn't dawdle around after dinner. As soon as she finished her meal she quickly scooted out of the kitchen to avoid more awkward conversations with Lilit. She decided it would probably be best to talk to Alek now before it got too late and before she lost her courage to do so. Passing down the hallway toward the sleeping chambers, Deryn saw light creeping out beneath Alek's bedroom door. She sucked in a deep breath and walked toward the doorway before raising her fist to knock.

She pounded three times and waited for an answer, but there wasn't one. Confused, Deryn cracked the door open a bit and peeked inside.

Alek had already fallen asleep! It was barely dark outside, yet Alek looked as though he had been getting ready to go to bed. His shoes were kicked off and it looked like he had started taking his shirt off but had dozed off in the middle of doing so. Currently he was lying on his back at the end of the bed with his legs dangling off the edge and his arms outstretched in odd angles. Deryn snorted back a fit of giggles. She realized that Alek probably had a very long day, or more like a very long week. Although she never thought he'd be so tired to fall asleep while he was getting undressed.

On the other side of the bedroom was a wooden desk illuminated with a small oil lamp. It was dangerous to leave the light burning while you were sleeping so Deryn tiptoed across the room in order to blow it out. Her eyes lingered a moment on Alek's sleeping form as she walked past. He looked different while he was asleep. For the first time that she could recall, he resembled a normal person and not a stuck up prince. Not only that, all the turmoil he usually carried with him was lifted as he peacefully snoozed. Deryn couldn't help but inch forward a bit to look closer.

He had managed to unbutton his shirt about halfway down so she had ample view of his chest, neck and shoulders. She managed to get so close to him that she could feel the heat from his skin and could hear him breathing.

Every ounce of her wanted to touch him. She had to stop herself from running her fingers through his hair, and she couldn't ignore the urge to brush her lips against his neck.

A movement in the corner of her eye brought Deryn back to reality. She jumped and turned around to face the desk. On top of a messy pile of papers strewn across the desk, Bovril was rearranging itself into a fuzzy white ball. Thankfully the creature was being quiet for once, although he was watching Deryn closely with his large brown eyes.

Terrified that the animal would start talking and wake Alek up, Deryn stepped over to stroke Bovril's fur. The beastie purred softly while she examined the contents on the desk.

The small bench was covered with various scraps of paper. They were all different colors and textures ranging from newspaper clippings to tissue paper and even a few scraps of thick fancy parchment paper. Everything had the evidence of being drawn upon. The parchment paper looked vaguely familiar and Deryn lifted one of the pieces to get a better look. She recognized the fraying on the edge as similar to when she had ripped pages out of her own sketchbook. The drawing on this particular piece was of a strange looking tower that was possibly made of metal. There were various sentences scribbled next to it in Clanker that she couldn't read and the drawing itself was very smudgy. Curious as to what it meant, she looked at other papers on the desk.

There were more drawings of the strange metal tower, all very messy and heavily drawn in her opinion, as well as photographs from newspapers with the same tower in them. More drawings included depictions of the copper twirly pipes she had carried around that day accompanied with more writing. Pencils and crumpled up paper littered the area, and Deryn had to believe that Alek had taken up drawing on a whim.

It struck her that she hadn't seen her own sketchbook for a long time. Her stomach clenched as she realized where the familiar looking parchment pieces had come from.

Bovril made a cooing noise and rubbed against her arm to beg for more pets. Annoyed, Deryn made to push the creature away from her when she noticed that the beastie was indeed standing on her long lost sketchbook. She snatched it up in an instant, the movement causing Bovril to cry out loudly.

"_God's wounds!" _The beastie squealed in what was obviously Alek's voice. Hearing his own exclamation being shouted from someone else caused Alek to shoot straight up and bed. Deryn froze.

"Dylan!" His face was immediately angry, "What on earth are you doing here!"

In other circumstances Deryn may have answered pleasantly, or even with a joke, but right now she was more than a little wound up.

"Honestly," She began, "I came here to apologize to you, although now I'm beginning to think that was a daft idea." She held up her sketchpad. "How did you get this?"

Alek had the grace to look a tad ashamed. His cheeks purpled a bit but Deryn didn't know if that was because he was embarrassed for taking her book or that he was shocked that she had barged into his room while he was sleeping.

"I…..I've been meaning to give that back to you." He stammered, not making eye contact with her.

She was not appeased.

"What made you take it in the first place, dummkopf!" She screamed.

"HEY! I did not take it from you!" He crossed his arms and glared at her from his spot on the bed. "You dropped it the same night we went back to the hotel. You were supposed to be standing guard for me but instead you had to stop in a nearby pub for a drink, remember?"

Deryn could have smacked him. "That's a load of clart! I only stopped in that bar because your da dragged me there!"

Alek looked like a cinder burning under an open flame, he was that angry. Somehow he was refraining from yelling anymore. He only brooded in silence and continued to stare her down.

"Just tell me why you stole my sketchbook." She asked him, trying to persuade him to talk to her again.

He shook his head. "I didn't steal it! I simply picked it up off the ground when you misplaced it. I was going to give it back, but….well….since we haven't been speaking to one another I was afraid to mention that I had it."

That was a tad alarming. Was Alek intimidated by her? And was he intimidated enough that he was afraid to speak with her? She took a long hard swallow.

"You say you picked it up and then _kept _it? Did you look inside?" She asked.

He didn't answer her right away. For a moment he looked away with his eyebrows twisted in knots.

"Alek?"

"You're very good at drawing." He said. It was the nice way of saying that he had snooped through her book.

She smashed her palm against her face.

So he had seen her drawings. Embarrassment clutched at the pits of her stomach. She hated it whenever anyone looked at her sketches. Now Alek had seen them, all of them, including the one or two that were depicting him as the subject matter.

"If you'd like, you can look at the drawings I made." He said softly, as if scared that she'd yell at him again.

Alek hopped off the bed and padded across the floor in his bare feet to where the desk was.

"Another reason I didn't give the book back to you right away was because I needed the paper." He said it as though this made everything all right.

"So you just ripped the pages out willy nilly and used them like they were your own."

He looked at her, completely bewildered.

"I told you before that my Da made that book for me! Don't you remember!" She spewed.

"I know." He mumbled. "But you have to understand that the paper was needed for some very important observations. If you come over here I can explain to you what they are and…."

"ARGHHH! You daft sod! You can't take other people's things and rip them apart! Did anyone ever teach you that back in Austria? Or were you too busy being a selfish prince? "

"Come again?"

"You know what, forget I mentioned it." She started to walk toward the door. "Goodnight, your princeliness."

"Dylan, wait!" He dashed after her and grabbed her wrist. "I really want you to see this."

Reluctantly she allowed him to pull her back to the desk and watched as he showed her the papers. "Do you recognize these?" He asked as he pointed to the drawings of the copper pipes.

"Yes." She grumbled.

"You told me the anarchists were building their pipes out of copper. At first I thought this was very peculiar since copper is so expensive and not the best material to build with, but then it dawned on me, what do people use copper for?" He grinned at her.

Was this some sort of joke?

"I don't know, Alek, and I don't really care."

"Copper is a highly conductive metal. Do you know what that means?"

"No."

"It means that the metal can conduct electricity. Do you understand how important this is?"

"Blisters, just spit it out."

"I think the anarchists are building one of those Tesla Cannons." He lifted one of the newspaper clippings that had a photo of the same metal tower he had been drawing. "I found these photographs all over the workshop. They don't have any writing to go with them, but the pictures look just like the Tesla Cannon that fired at the _Leviathan _and shot Newkirk down."

She yanked the clipping out of his hand and held it up to her face. In the dim lamplight the details were hard to make out, but she was certain that she could remember the shape of that tower forever. Why hadn't she noticed it when she looked at Alek's drawings a few minutes ago?

"Barking spiders!"

"I've been trying to draw out how the engineers will build it, but it just doesn't make sense to me. There's no way they could build such a huge tower with only copper supports. They'd need at least a few iron beams or steel joists to hold the tower up."

Something came to Deryn that she hadn't realized before.

"Alek, you aren't trying to help the anarchists build this, are you?"

He shrugged.

"You can't! Don't you remember how dangerous the first Tesla Cannon was? And this one looks nearly ten times as big! If you help them build this, who knows how many people they could kill with this thing!"

"I have to help them."

"Are you cracked in the attic?"

"Listen to me, Dylan. They need my help. They may have multitudes of knowledge on how to build walkers and the like, but I can help them design this weapon. Hoffman was a skilled engineer who worked with many German weapon smiths, and I've learned many things from him. Plus, there's always the issue with the anarchist being able to afford this gigantic structure. If I can support them with the bit of gold I have left, then they can purchase the iron and steel beams they need!"

"You're talking mad."

"I know it sounds crazy, but I feel I have to do this. It's almost like it is my destiny."

Deryn thought she didn't hear him correctly. But the look on his face was pure gallantry. Like he was some sort of hero or knight on a white horse come to save the city from a ferocious dragon.

"You're nuts."

"Think about it though. Why else do you think I've been sent here to Istanbul?"

"Because the _Leviathan _took you here."

"I've been brought here by the will of God. It's almost like I've been sent here to help these people. Lilit and her family are leading a revolution against a corrupt government and I can assist them in overthrowing their ruthless sultan!"

"Alek, that's ridiculous!"

"No it isn't! If you really consider it, it makes up for the fact that my parents were killed. It's similar to a prophecy: one person is killed so another can be rescued. If my parents were still alive then I wouldn't be here helping the men and women of this country."

She shouldn't have said anything more. She should have bit her tongue and left it at that. But she didn't. Instead of leaving the room and wishing Alek goodnight, Deryn had to open her big daft mouth and dig herself an even deeper grave.

"Alek, your parents _are_ alive."

The moment she said it, Alek's eyes narrowed to slits. His skin paled and he stepped back from her, his mouth had bent down into a severe and disappointed frown.

"You need to leave my room. Now." He said, clear and icy. It was the coldest and angriest she had ever seen him. The look he was giving her was so hurt and ashamed, she could have cried. She didn't though. Somehow she managed to uphold her dignity and exit the bedroom with a dry face. But that didn't last long. As soon as she was in the hallway and Alek had slammed the door behind her, tears began to pour down her face and Deryn began to sob.

Blisters , it wasn't fair! She was so close to being friends with Alek again but had mussed the whole thing up in one second.

She managed to walk a few unsteady steps away from Alek's door before she realized that she was still clutching the sketchbook. Another thorn pierced into her side when she remembered him stealing her book and looking at its private contents. Furious, she stopped and turned to throw the pad of paper at Alek's door with a heart stopping crash. If he had opened the door to see what had happened she never witnessed it. As quickly as she had thrown the thing Deryn was racing down the hallway and into her own room.

This was the last straw. She was done trying to be Alek's friend. She was done with the whole thing. If he wanted to throw his inheritance away on something stupid like a Tesla Cannon, then there was nothing she could do to stop him. Nor was she too keen on staying and watching that happen. And if he was insistent on believing that she was lying to him, well there was nothing she could do about that either.

She shoved the few articles of clothing and possessions she had into her duffle bag. Two minutes later she was down a staircase and out the back door of the warehouse. Without a look behind, Deryn wiped her face of tears and departed from the anarchist hideout as fast as she could.


	21. Chapter 21

Seconds after Dylan had left his room Alek heard a loud thud emanate from the door. Thinking that the midshipman was trying to break his door down, Alek quickly ran over to open it.

No one was in the dark hallway outside his meager room. He glanced both ways down the corridor, wondering where Dylan could have gotten to so quickly.

Another loud slam echoed through the hall. It had come from where Dylan's bedroom was located at the other end of the long passage. It was obvious that the other boy had pulled his door closed as hard as he could.

In an attempt to illustrate his frustration, Alek tried to slam his own door behind him but something caught in its way. When he glanced at the floor to see what had slowed the door his heart sank with guilt. There, between his feet and the doorway was Dylan's measly sketchbook.

He still couldn't completely understand why the midshipman admired the little book. It was ugly and worn and the papers were old and water stained. He would have returned the frail little thing but instead he had been planning to get Dylan a new one. In Austria they had gorgeous handmade books of every color and size. A handmade leather bound sketchpad could be easily obtained. Alek was actually looking forward to giving the boy a proper drawing pad, something that was worthy of Dylan's skillful artwork.

Yet as he leaned down to his feet to pick up the discarded and torn apart sketchpad, Alek gulped. It had occurred to him that getting back to Austria would be very difficult on its own, let alone having the time to get a new book for Dylan.

The old one sat softly in his hands. The cover had once been leather but now was so worn it was almost transparent. As he opened it and flipped through the pages Alek noted once again how ancient the paper looked. They were so old that the texture of them was gone, now battered down to a soft, velvety feeling against his fingers.

He had to admit that age seemed to bring a certain charm to the little book. It had a crisp, dusty aroma that reminded him of a scholarly study or library. He could count how many pages were left in the book on only two hands. Sadly he had torn out the rest of the aged paper while fussing over his own drawings.

_Dylan must have really treasured this. _He thought. An ache settled in his stomach when he remembered that Dylan's father had made the book. It was obvious now that the sketchpad wasn't made by a professional book maker but by a common man. An inscription was inked on the back cover that he hadn't realized before. It read:

_November Second of the year Eighteen Hundred and Eighty One. Happy Birthday, Sweetheart._

And beneath that:

_Rebound for my little bird, February Twelfth, Nineteen Hundred and Seven.  
><em>

Alek groaned. He couldn't remember his father ever making him a birthday gift, not when he could hire someone else to make it for him.

It suddenly dawned on him why this book was so important to Dylan, and why he had kept it for so many years.

_And I was the dummkopf who ripped it apart. _

Dylan may have brutally lied to him but that didn't mean he should have destroyed a family heirloom. He would have to apologize for this. Grudgingly he closed the book and trudged down the hallway toward Dylan's door.

There was no light emerging from the midshipman's room. Alek knocked but no one responded.

"Dylan?" He mumbled nervously. "Would you be so kind and open the door. I'm aware that my actions were a bit uncalled for and I've come to return your book. "

No answer. Goodness was Dylan ever stubborn.

"Don't think I'm forgiving you for lying to me, because I'm not. I was only coming to apologize for ruining your father's book."

Again, no answer.

"Dylan?" This time Alek didn't wait for a reply. He grabbed the doorknob and shoved his body into the darkened room. The dim light of the hallway revealed that the bedroom was empty. Not only was Dylan no longer inside, but all his things were missing as well.

Alek's eyes gaped across the room, stuck between the empty, wide open wardrobe and the bed which had been stripped of all blankets and sheets.

"God's wounds!" He yelped in German. "Dylan, you fool!"

The boy was gone, that was clear. Alek, on the other hand, was livid. Shoving the sketchbook into his jacket pocket, he scrambled out of the hallway and down several staircases until he was at the back door entrance of the warehouse. Dylan may think he had gotten away, but Alek wasn't about to let him off so easy.

Where would Dylan go now that he had left the anarchists? The _Leviathan _had left days ago and Alek doubted that there were any more Darwinists in the city. Additionally, it was dangerous to walk around Constantinople at night. Surely Dylan remembered being attacked and drugged by a vicious murderer! Alek shuddered when images of Dylan's wounded palms resurfaced in his mind.

_Better find him fast! _He thought.

It was only early evening outside, so not all the street lamps had been lit yet. Alek rushed to the main channel of the city, a large road that was only a few blocks away from the warehouse. He stood atop a large wooden crate that was abandoned on the side of the road to get better view ahead of him.

Thousands of passerbies were swarming the cobblestone street, all heading home from work or starting out on a night on the town. Alek scanned dozens of faces, hoping to catch sight of Dylan. He was near giving up when he spotted a familiar head of shiny blond hair in the moonlight. He squealed with joy and jumped off the crate before charging down the road in the direction of his lost friend.

Dylan had stopped next to a clothing shop where he was talking loudly to a short angry woman. Alek didn't need to be close to hear them shouting at one another.

"Clean out your bloody ears, Miss, cause you're not hearing me right!" Dylan snapped. "I tried everything I could, but he wouldn't believe me!"

The woman, whose face was not visible due to a large scarf draped over her head, had one hand tightly gripping Dylan's wrist and the other pointing furiously at the boy's face.

"No!" She hollered. "You aren't listening to me! You need to go back and retrieve him immediately! That's an order!"

Her voice caused Alek's throat to close up and his stomach to twist in circles. His left foot stopped dead and his right continued to run, causing him to stumble over and fall face first onto the cobblestones.

"I don't care if it's a barking order, I am not going back!" Dylan trilled. "You are going to have to do that yourself, ma'am, I'm finished."

"ARGHHHH!" The woman screamed. "How dare you refuse me!"

It didn't matter if she was speaking in English or that she was screaming three octaves higher than usual, Alek could recognize that voice anywhere. Terrified to lift his head from the ground, scared that it was a dream and that if he opened his eyes he'd wake up, Alek continued to lie on the street for a moment and listen to her screaming at Dylan.

"When I order you to do something you are required to follow my command!"

"And why should I?" Dylan snorted. "Last time I checked you weren't able to give commands anymore."

"Do you realize who you are talking to?"

"A Clanker lady with a bad case of the grumps."

"I'll have you know that if we were in Austria I could have you arrested for this!"

"Oh no, I am _sooooo_ scared." Dylan said with dripping sarcasm.

"You will return from where you came and collect my son. Understood?"

"I would, your highness, but he's chosen to stay where he is so I'd rather not budge him."

Alek decided that if this was a dream he might as well enjoy it completely. He stood quickly, shoved past a few more people in the street and nearly stampeded into Dylan and the woman that might be his mother.

He had his arms around her so quickly she didn't know what had happened. Intuition had caused her to startle and shove Alek away, but Dylan was right there to catch him.

"Barking spiders! Alek, you daft sod! I can't believe you followed me here. Thank God you were finally able to do something right!"

Sophie Ferdinand had removed her scarf. Either than the tears glistening down her cheeks she was exactly as Alek had remembered her. Sharp features, pale skin, black hair and big emerald eyes. This was the first time he could remember her crying.

She waited half a breath before yanking him out of Dylan's arms and into her own.

"My baby boy!" She squealed and began showering his face with kisses. Two months ago he would have scolded her for calling him by such a childish name but right now he could barely get his mouth open to speak. They only got to hug for a few seconds before Dylan began tugging on Alek's coat.

"This is darling, really, but we shouldn't make such a scene in public, people are watching." He nodded toward a few confused looking men that had walked out of the clothing store next to them. They were giving Alek some very odd stares.

"He's right, mother." Alek pushed away slightly, "We don't want to be spotted by the wrong crowd."

She nodded profusely and wiped the tears away with her fingers. "Very well, follow me."

Sophie grasped Alek's forearm and with a surprising amount of strength pulled him along the street to a nearby alley. Dylan took up the rear and made sure to check behind them for followers.

They traveled a long distance over three bridges and down several dark alleys before arriving at a very seedy looking building. There was a narrow wooden staircase on the outside that they climbed all the way to the top floor. A rickety yellowed door greeted them on their final ascent. Sophie rapped on it four times before it creaked open.

"Hurry inside!" She shoved them both in before closing the door tightly and locking three different bolts. It was pitch dark inside and Alek could barely make out a cloud of smoke in front of him.

"This is a pleasant surprise." Said a calm, cooing voice. "It's good to see you again, Dylan, and did you bring a friend? Or is that….no…it couldn't be!"

Alek didn't know what he recognized first, the peaceful tenor of his father's voice or the smell of his tobacco pipe. He gave a shocked cry before clasping his arms around his father. The man was so surprised he dropped his pipe.

"But…how…you aren't supposed to be here!" He stuttered. Alek's eyes had adjusted to the faint candlelight of the room. When he looked up in his father's face he let go of his embrace. The man's eyes were a mix of worry and anger. He was biting his lip and shaking in fury. This was very peculiar; Franz Ferdinand was never a man to show outright anger, especially in a moment such as this.

"What's wrong, father?" Alek asked nervously.

Franz shook his head before leaning down to retrieve his pipe. "You are not supposed to be in Constantinople anymore." His face darkened as he turned to speak to Dylan. "Aleksander was supposed to leave the city via passage on the _Leviathan, _Mr. Sharp, unless I am mistaken?"

Dylan swallowed loudly. "I…I…was….that is…."

"Do you realize the danger you have put him through, keeping him here in a city full of enemy soldiers? And with all three of us together it makes us a much easier target."

"I'm very sorry sir…errrr…I mean, your highness." Dylan stumbled.

"Thankfully Aleksander is still safe, but you should know that serious consequences can arise from your foolish actions! I would think that a soldier such as yourself would know better, but obviously I was wrong. You are clearly…."

"That's enough!" Sophie interrupted. Astonishingly she had paced over to Dylan's side and was now embracing the boy with one arm. "Dylan has been through an awful lot of hardship as has Alek. I think it would be best if you dropped the subject and offered your son some kind words. Can't you tell that you've upset him?"

Alek instantly observed that he was crying, perhaps more so than he had in months. He tried to wipe the tears away but they continued to pour out and down his face in waterfalls. Dylan was sniffing a bit too and smudging his own face with his sleeve. The image struck Franz hard and Alek saw his father's expression change to one of immense regret. He sighed heavily and clapped Alek on the shoulder before pulling him into a gruff hug.

"I'm sorry, son. I don't mean to frighten you, but your safety is my greatest concern. I'm sure one day you'll understand."

Alek could only nod. Embraces from his father were rare occurrences, probably even more so during a war. Soon Franz had released him and walked to a couch across the room. He plopped down gracefully, put up his feet and began puffing his pipe once again.

"Sophie, why don't you get the boys something to eat?" He said as his usual charming self, "I'm sure they need some sustenance."

For once his mother didn't argue back and only mumbled something under her breath that sounded something along the lines of 'lazy bastard' in German. She departed from Dylan's side and made her way to what must have been the kitchen in the other room. It wasn't long before he and Dylan were sitting down to a plateful of crackers and a pot of tea. Alek had gulped down nearly three cupfuls before noticing that Dylan hadn't touched anything.

"Dylan, what's wrong?" He asked pleasantly.

Dylan could only shake his head in silence. The boy looked like he was trying to hold something back. If it was tears or anger or even laughter, Alek wasn't sure. He continued to sip his tea in quiet, waiting for Dylan to speak. Minutes passed and all Alek could do was watch the other boy. After what felt like hours, Alek was about to break the silence when his father slid into the room and sat between them.

"You know, Sharp, I think I never thanked you for your assistance. You've sacrificed a lot for our family, and I really appreciate it." He said it very calmly and nonchalantly, but Alek knew he meant every word of it. His father was now putting out his pipe and helping himself to some tea. "Alek, don't you have anything to say to your friend?"

Alek almost choked on his tea.

_God's wounds he's right. I completely forgot to thank him. _

"Dylan, I…..I'm so so very sorry."

The midshipman looked up from his lap and pierced Alek with a very long stare.

"I called you a liar, and I didn't believe you and here you were telling the truth all along! God almighty, all those hateful things I said…I'm really very sorry Dylan."

Slowly Dylan nodded and moved to pick up his full cup of tea for a first sip.

"S'all right." Dylan grumbled.

"NO IT'S NOT!" Alek slammed down his tea cup causing the small table to shake. "You risked everything to help me. Hell, you even gave up the ability to fly home just to help me. Christ, Dylan, if I didn't know better I would think you were crazy!"

Dylan finally smiled a little and even rewarded Alek with a bit of a chuckle. "Maybe I am." He said.

"I hate to interrupt." Franz said. "But there is one thing that has been bothering me, _Mr. _Sharp." There was a very mischievous gleam in his eye that caused Dylan to suddenly blush and cringe.

"What…what is that, sir?" Dylan stammered.

"I was wondering, _Mr_. Sharp. Why go through all this effort? Why did you risk so much on Alek's benefit? Being a Darwinist soldier and all, it just doesn't make any sense to me."

Dylan thought about it for a few seconds before grinning smugly and responding.

"Well, Alek doesn't really have many folks to watch out for him. All he's got is that wretched Count and a few of his men and that's it. He doesn't even have much family. No siblings. Guess I was taking the place of a brother or sister while he doesn't have any. Although that's going to change pretty soon, isn't it?"

It was Franz's turn to choke on his tea. More than choke, he spit out a spray of the beverage all over the table, an action that Alek was certain had never happened before in his father's entire life.

"Father! What on earth…."

"It's all right Mr. Archduke, I'll tell him." Dylan beamed. "I'm not surprised that you didn't figure it out yet, your princeliness, being as daft as you are. But your mum's going to have a baby! Congratulations!"

Alek couldn't call Dylan a liar again, nor could he ignore his father spitting up another mouthful of tea. Instead he raised one eyebrow and smiled at Dylan with delight.

"You know, for once I'm glad that you're so blunt, Mr. Sharp!"


	22. Chapter 22

I realize that it has been a long time since I updated last. I lost internet for a week so sorry for the delay! Enjoy!

.

.

.

.

Deryn reckoned that her life was finally starting to fall into the right place. She stretched lazily and slipped out of the mess of blankets she had slept in. Sophie had set up a place for her to sleep on the couch in the main room of their worn down apartment. Across the small room, Alek was fast asleep on the ragged armchair, his head slumped over to one side as he snoozed. Deryn smiled to herself and decided it was best to let him sleep. After one more good stretch she folded up her blankets and tiptoed into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Ms. Sharp." Said a smooth voice as she entered the room. Alek's father, the Archduke of Austria-Hungary, was sitting down for breakfast and reading the paper. Deryn couldn't see his face behind the large German newsprint, but she could see the smoke of his pipe billowing above his head. Deryn didn't know how to respond to him. She was still very intimidated by the man and stood stock still in the doorway of the kitchen, staring at him.

"Well don't just stand there." He put the newspaper down, exposing his face and a peculiar lopsided grin. "Come, sit down. Have some toast. I'm afraid it's a bit burned, but better than nothing." He motioned to the seat next to him and Deryn had no choice but to join him.

The toast was more than a bit burned, it was completely blackened. She tried to be polite and take a few bites but couldn't manage eating more than that. Franz seemed to realize her discomfort and offered her a sympathetic smile.

"Don't force yourself, my dear." He suggested. "Heaven knows I couldn't eat the stuff."

Deryn wondered why he offered her the burnt food in the first place as he continued speaking.

"Sophie isn't the most talented in the culinary department. She started the bread this morning and promptly retired back to bed once it started to cook. I'm afraid that the toast was unattended to for the remainder of the morning."

Deryn gave a gentle grin and returned the black bread back to her plate. The shabby apartment and little kitchen were probably significantly different from what the Archduke and Duchess were used to. She imagined Alek's charming father and striking mother in their palace, eating exotic fruit and elaborate pastries on golden platters for their breakfast. The image was very unsettling.

"Now then," Franz Ferdinand interrupted her thoughts, "I think I have something that may interest you." He slid the newspaper he was reading across the table so she could see it. The headlines were all in German, but Deryn could easily recognize the photograph on the front page. It was a large shot of the _Leviathan_ afloat above Istanbul. Beside it was a portrait of a delighted looking man in a wealthy looking Turkish outfit and turban. Beneath that was a photo of the same man shaking the hand of Captain Hobbes. Although the Turkish man looked like he would piss his pants he was so excited, Hobbes had a very sour look on his face. Deryn frowned and put the paper down. She didn't know what the captain of the _Leviathan _was doing in a German newspaper, but she realized she probably wasn't going to like it.

"What does it say?" She asked the Archduke.

Franz took a long inhale from his pipe and blew a cloud of smoke out of his nose before answering her.

"It appears that the _Leviathan _is now in the possession of the Ottoman Empire."

"WHAT!" Deryn felt her insides crumble into one another.

"Indeed." He grumbled. "It's written here that a female boffin on the ship offered the airbeast as a gift to the Sultan. I don't completely understand why, but my guess would be that it was to offshoot all the industrial help the Germans have been giving to the Ottomans recently."

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Deryn blurted. She yanked the paper back and rescanned the images. There were no photos of Dr. Barlow. The lady boffin wouldn't do anything this ridiculous, well, at least Derym hoped not.

"This of course changes everything." Franz said calmly. "Even though the _Leviathan _now belongs to the Ottomans, the ship and her crew are still in the city." He scratched his beard quizzically and gave Deryn a serious look. "This means there is still a chance of getting Aleksander back to Great Britain with you."

Deryn opened her mouth in disbelief but couldn't get herself to say anything.

"We will need to discuss the details later." He answered for her. "Why don't you wake Alek up and start packing your things. I think it's almost time that we pay your little anarchist friends a visit."

She had no idea what the anarchists had to do with anything, but Deryn was too startled to ask. She exited the table in a rush and bolted into the other room where Alek was still snoring away on the armchair. She grasped his shoulders and shook him violently, causing the boy to startle and wake.

"Achh! Good gracious, Dylan, what on earth are you…."

"No time to dawdle, your princeliness, everything's gone to madness."

Alek looked up at her with bleary unfocused eyes. "Wha?"

"Just get up and put your clothes on. It seems like the _Leviathan _is still in Istanbul after all."

He didn't question her. He didn't need to, Deryn realized. This was too important to stand around and talk about. Whatever happened next was going to be shifty, and she had a feeling that whatever Alek's father had in mind, it wasn't going to go smoothly.


	23. Chapter 23

Alek had little recollection of Lilit ever being happy. There were a few times he had seen a brief smile from the girl, or maybe a hint of a laugh, but most of the time she had always been frowning. That is, unless Dylan was around.

He figured their returning to the warehouse would generate a delightful array of emotions from the anarchist girl. She would squeal in joy as soon as she saw Dylan return from his few hours away, he was sure of it. But once they arrived at the secret abode, Alek realized he was terribly mistaken.

The look Lilit gave them as they entered Nene's room could probably kill a small animal or perhaps even a young child. If the expression was sour, it almost doubled in strength when she narrowed her vision to Dylan alone.

"You left." She said, crossing her arms as she spoke.

"….Aye." Dylan managed to say softly. Even a strong young airman such as him was dumbfounded by such a menacing gaze.

"Why?" Lilit asked. Her eyes passed suspiciously over Alek and his parents. Behind him Alek could feel his father stiffen his posture and glare back at the strange girl. Lilit wasn't intimidated. In fact, the threatening strangers seemed to make her even more bold. "Who are they and what are they doing here?" She grumbled.

Alek could only shrug. His father and mother had insisted on returning to the warehouse and talking with the anarchists, although he couldn't possibly understand why. From his standpoint it looked like they had the perfect opportunity to stay away from the revolutionaries, but for some reason they were back among Lilit and her family.

"We've come to speak with your grandmother." Franz finally spoke. "Is she here?"

Lilit opened her mouth, obviously about to say something offensive, when a familiar rasping voice interrupted her.

"Lilit, child, please stop being such a sourpuss and welcome our guests in. I don't think they are here to chat with you."

Thankfully Lilit stood aside and led them deeper into the darkened room. Alek remembered the dusty darkness of the place and still found it slightly unsettling. Toward the end of the room there was a large shadowy figure that moved into the light as they walked closer. Alek immediately recognized it as Nene's gigantic mechanical bed. It awkwardly marched in front of them before creaking to a sudden halt.

"You must be Alek's parents, the Archduke and Duchess." Nene chimed. "As the head of this household I have to say that we are delighted to have you here."

Alek choked back a curse. How on earth did this woman know who they were? She may know Alek's identity but that didn't mean she should recognize his parents instantly. He noticed that his mother was struck shaking from the old woman's declaration, but his father was the postcard image of a calm diplomat. He strode gracefully to Nene's side and lifted her hand to his lips to kiss.

"The pleasure is mine, madam." He cooed.

Nene waved her arm to a few seats beside the wall, obviously offering them a place to sit down. Everyone slowly headed over to the chairs and took a seat. Well, everyone besides Lilit. Her large dark eyes were still angrily focused on Dylan while she continued to stand with her arms crossed.

"What is wrong, child?" Nene piped.

Grudgingly, Lilit finally unfolded her arms with a sigh and spoke.

"I'm just confused as to why you are treating these people like old friends when they clearly don't deserve it."

"LILIT!" Nene's mouth opened wide in surprise.

"I don't mean to be rude," Lilit continued, "but I have to point out that Dylan and Alek full out _disappeared _yesterday without even a hint at goodbye, and now you are welcoming them back with open arms? I hate to say it, but there is a war going on, grandmamma, and you can't just trust any vagabond who shows up at your door!"

"I beg your pardon!" Alek's mother stood up quickly and without delay found it necessary to join the conversation. "But just who do you think you are calling vagabonds?"

Alek buried his face in his hands. Not that he wasn't delighted that his mother was alive and well, but the woman could be very opinionated at times.

"Please mother, you can't…" He reached for her and tried to pull her back to her seat but Sophie swatted his hand away.

"Quiet, Alek!" She snapped in German, "I don't know who this girl thinks she is, but she has no right to address us as common vagabonds!"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Lilit answered sarcastically to his mother in German as well. "But did I offend you, Miss Lady Duchess?" She gave a mocking curtsy in his mothers direction complete with an over the top arm flourish. Alek saw his mother's jaw clench and before he could stop her, Sophie charged across the room and began shouting at Lilit in fast, crude German.

Alek's face was a flush with embarrassment. On his left, Dylan had a similar expression and was wringing his hands nervously. However, Alek's father was calm as a lark, watching the whole scene with an amused look on his face.

"All right now settle down!" Nene shouted from her bed. It was very loud for a woman so feeble and old, but Lilit and Sophie didn't seem to hear her. They continued to snap at each other's faces while Nene shouted louder and louder. Alek covered his ears from the shrill voices and backed up further in his chair.

_Why is mother making such a fool of herself! _He thought. Beside him, Dylan was wide eyed in shock but his father continued to look calm and slightly entertained. In fact, a few seconds later Alek witnessed him pull out his tobacco pipe and light it.

Nene wasn't nearly as composed as his father. On the contrary, she was red and puffy in the face with anger. Eventually she got so upset she threw the blankets off of herself and, to Alek's shock, lifted herself out of the bed.

Nobody else seemed to realize at first and Alek gaped at the little elderly woman as she jumped off of the mattress and walked, almost gracefully, over to her granddaughter. She tapped Lilit purposefully on the shoulder, causing the girl to stop shouting for a moment and turn to face her grandmother.

"You should order her away from the warehouse!" Lilit barked at the old woman. "I don't care that she's an archduchess or whatever, she should….."

Lilit never finished saying what she thought Alek's mother should do. She had turned and was gazing at her grandmother, her silence flushing the room with a sudden breath of amazement.

Sophie didn't seem to understand why everyone was so quiet all of sudden, but she joined the hush and closed her mouth as well. For a few seconds the group took in the thick quiet, until Dylan shot up from his seat and bellowed.

"Barking spiders! You can walk!" He was pointing rudely at Nene, but the woman only smiled at Dylan and walked across the room with ease to where he and Alek were situated.

"Yes, that is correct, child." She spoke. Gently she took Dylan by the wrist and ushered him back into his seat as she sat down beside him.

Across the room Lilit looked like she was about to faint.

"Nene…how are you able to...?" She muttered and then grasped the banister of the mechanical bed to hold herself up.

"I've been perfectly capable of walking for years, dear, I just choose not to."

"But why didn't you...?" Lilit was still flabbergasted.

"Why didn't I tell you? Well, sweetheart, it was one of those things that I prefer for people not to know about me. My enemies don't see me as much of a threat if I am crippled."

Lilit swallowed hard. The idea that her beloved grandmother had been lying to her for years seemed to be a bit of a burden on the girl.

"Who else knows?" Lilit asked.

"Not many." Nene answered pleasantly. "Your father for one."

"Father didn't tell me either!"

"Yes, as well as the maid, Talia, and Marcus of course."

"MARCUS!" Lilit screamed. "You let that idiot know but not me!"

"Calm down, dearest, Marcus is a very trustworthy individual who….."

"Trustworthy? Marcus?" Lilit snorted, "You must be joking."

Nene tried to continue her argument but before she could say anything more, Lilit had dashed out of the room.

"What a rude young woman!" Sophie declared as soon as Lilit was gone.

"Try not to take her too seriously." Nene frowned. "Lilit has had a rough few days. She was devastated when her new friends Alek and Dylan left and the current news about the _Leviathan _has left everyone in a bad mood."

"News about the _Leviathan_?" Alek's father took a long drag from his pipe and grinned at the woman. "Is this the same news we heard earlier about the airship being given over to the Sultan."

"Unfortunately, yes." Nene grumbled. "With the _Leviathan _in possession, I'm afraid it won't be long until the entire Ottoman Empire is pulled into this war."

At the mention of the _Leviathan_, Alek's head spun around to see what Dylan was thinking.

The boy had a horrified expression. Alek couldn't remember ever seeing Dylan look so scared. Surprisingly, the news about the _Leviathan _didn't seem to faze him because he didn't seem to be listening to what Nene was saying. Instead, his eyes were darting between the woman's face and her hand, which was still gripping Dylan's wrist.

"Are you alright, Dylan? You look upset." Alek asked his friend.

Dylan was startled by Alek's voice and almost leapt out of his chair he was so taken aback. Alek was very confused as to what had caused the middie to act so strangely, when a noise at the door interrupted his thoughts.

Lilit was barging back into the room. Behind her was a tall young man in a suit. Alek recognized him immediately.

"The man from the hotel!" Alek blurted. "You're the manager of the Hotel Sophia, I remember you!"

The man only looked at Alek blankly and blinked.

"Manager from the hotel? What are you talking about?" Lilit grumbled, "This is Marcus. He is one of my Grandmother's assistants."

"The hotel manager!" Dylan sputtered. He still seemed a bit shook up for some reason. "You were the hotel manager? But I saw you here only a few days ago. He tried to stop me in the hallway for some reason."

Alek didn't expect Dylan to remember the Hotel Manager at all because the boy had been unconscious at the time. Yet he recalled the man clearly. It was right after he had rescued Dylan from the dumpster. Alek had been carrying the midshipman on his back and had rushed into the hotel lobby, begging for someone to call for a doctor. This very man, Marcus, had insisted that Alek return to his room with Dylan as to not upset the other people in the lobby. Alek had been furious at the time and couldn't understand why he was being forced back to his room. As he recalled it, Marcus never did call a doctor and Dylan had to fend for his own injuries by himself.

Lilit seemed to be remembering the same occurrences because she was now giving her grandmother a very suspicious look.

"Nene, why does Aleksander think Marcus was a hotel manager?" She asked.

Nene didn't answer, only smiled mischievously. Marcus had turned his face away from everyone and was looking uncomfortably at the ceiling.

"Nene!" Lilit asked again, this time a bit louder.

"My priorities have always been, and always will be surrounding the safety and well being of my family." Nene answered. She pulled herself up from the chair, finally releasing Dylan's wrists. The boy immediately looked happier to have his hands back and held them tightly to his chest.

"So, you positioned Marcus as the hotel manager?" Lilit questioned.

"Indeed." Nene delicately walked over to the other side of the room. Seeing her on two feet, Alek suddenly realized how poised the woman was. She moved like a ballerina across a marble stage. He stared as she lifted an enormous ewer of water off of the night stand to pour herself a drink. The large glass jug must have easily weighed over twelve kilograms, but Nene carried it like it was a teacup.

"I was only there to watch over you." Marcus suddenly said. He pointed to Lilit and continued. "Your grandmother was concerned with your safety, so she sent me to watch over you while you were staying at the hotel with the prince."

"How long were you there?" Dylan asked. They all flipped around to see him glaring at Marcus with intense hatred.

"ummmm…." Marcus looked absentmindedly at the ceiling again.

"Mr. Sharp asked you a question, Marcus!" Lilit bellowed. There was a brief silence before:

"_Mr. _Sharp!" Came the familiar tenor of Count Volger's voice. It, of course, wasn't him but Bovril who had leapt out of nowhere and jumped up onto Alek's shoulder.

"ArGHH! What is that thing!" Sophie shrieked. She dashed over to try and remove Bovril from Alek's shoulder, but the loris was faster and had quickly bounded across the room and headed for the door. It stopped suddenly in its tracks and tripped over its own feet and tail like a sort of forward somersault. Shaking, Bovril stood frozen in the middle of the floor between Alek and Marcus. The beastie stared wickedly at the tall man with its round eyes. Its hair puffed straight upward on its back and it began to give a faint growling noise that sounded almost like a hiss.

Alek had never seen Bovril behave so aggressively. He moved over to reach for the fabrication but Dylan had bounded in front of him before he could get there.

"Bovril doesn't like you." Dylan declared, like he was accusing the man for murder.

"Well I can see that!" Marcus stepped back from the loris as Dylan scooped Bovril into his arms.

"Is it possible that its met you before?" Dylan asked. He walked closer to the man causing Marcus to back up even more. Bovril continued to hiss and was trying to push its way out of Dylan's arms.

"I have never seen such a ridiculous looking creature in my entire life!" Marcus squealed. He looked as terrified of Bovril as Bovril was of him.

Dylan took one more step towards the man but Bovril had decided that enough was enough. Using all four of its legs the loris shoved its way out of Dylan's grasp and leapt the short distance onto Marcus. With one startling movement the fabrication had ran its claw across the hotel manager's face. Marcus shrieked as a trickle of blood began to flow down his left cheek.

Bovril didn't stay long. The instant after Marcus began to bleed the loris had soared across the room and landed right on top of Nene. Alek watched as the fabrication lifted its paw to scratch again, but Nene was somehow able to stop it. Her hand shot out so fast that Alek was unable to see it. Now, Bovril lay on floor, dazed but unharmed.

Dylan managed a high pitched screech while rescuing Bovril from the ground where Nene had pushed him. The loris was still hissing, but it sat menacingly on Dylan's shoulder without attempting to fight any more.

Marcus was beside himself in terror. He was wiping the blood off his face along with an excruciating amount of tears.

"Get a hold of yourself, you big dope." Lilit scowled at him. "It's barely even a scratch."

Marcus continued to sob as Dylan kept glaring at him.

"You never answered my question!" The midshipman growled. "How long were you at the hotel?"

Marcus sniffed. "Not that long. I don't think I was there for longer than a few hours while Ms. Lilit was staying there, that's all."

"Were you there before we got there?" Dylan asked.

Marcus looked away from Dylan and continued to mop up his face with his sleeve.

"Why does it even matter?" He blubbered.

"Because someone had to have been there when we entered the building, and that someone must have known which floor we were staying on. Or at least knew which floor the elevator should land on!"

Alek gasped. "You don't mean….."

"I think it's pretty clear that there was a person in the hotel that day who was watching our comings and goings." Dylan said. "Some bloke who had timed it perfectly so as to scare us with a dead body in the elevator!"

Marcus's face suddenly went icy pale and he immediately stopped crying. Lilit, on the other hand, began to laugh.

"You think that Marcus killed your friend?" She giggled. "Highly unlikely! Marcus couldn't kill a mosquito!"

Dylan gave Lilit a very disgusted sneer. "How do you know that!" He barked.

"Oh come on, Dylan, look at him!" She gestured to the man standing next to her who had begun to cry once again. "He can't even fight off Bovril!"

Alek had to agree that Marcus didn't seem the type to kill anyone, yet he still wasn't sure that the man was innocent.

"Marcus, if you were there, then you must have had something to do with Bauer's murder!"

"Bauer's murder!" Alek's father stood up in surprise.

"Exactly!" Dylan cried. "This man assisted in Bauer's murder!" He pointed directly into Marcus' face. "But he wasn't the one who killed him," Dylan quickly turned on his toes and reversed his point to the woman behind him. "YOU DID!" He shouted, his index finger aimed directly at Nene.

No one spoke for a long minute. Even Bovril had stopped hissing, causing the room to freeze in deep quiet.

Finally Nene moved. She shrugged slightly and then gave a small nod. "You're very perceptive, _Mr. _Sharp."

"NO!" Lilit collapsed to the floor. "But Nene, why?"

"I really didn't feel like sharing this with our new Austrian friends, but I guess I don't really have a choice." Nene said.

"No really?" Dylan began to scream, but Nene raised her hand to quiet the boy.

"Allow me to explain, Dylan. As I said before, my highest priority has always been the safety and well being of my family."

"That's the biggest load of yackum I have ever heard!" Dylan retorted. This time Alek's father quieted him with a look.

"I want to hear what the woman has to say." Franz said calmly. "Bauer was my man, and I think it is necessary that I know all the details of his death."

"Thank you, your highness. As I was saying, a part of my family was in danger. In this case, Lilit was accompanying Prince Aleksander around the city. At first I thought the situation was controlled and that my granddaughter was perfectly capable of taking care of everything herself, but that soon changed when the midshipman joined the foray."

Dylan looked like he was about to argue again but Alek put a hand on his shoulder causing the boy to jump.

"When Mr. Sharp joined Lilit and Alek, he was not alone. A man from the airship had followed him to their location. He must have been who you call Bauer. I saw the man as a threat and had to dispose of him immediately." Nene said rationally. "It was actually very simple. Marcus had been keeping an eye on Lilit and Alek and when he witnessed Dylan and Bauer enter the hotel, he informed me immediately. A few minutes later, Bauer was dead, humanely killed with a simple cut to the jugular."

She said the whole thing so sweetly that Alek felt sick to his stomach.

"So you killed Hans Bauer in the elevator but left Dylan alive, why?" Franz asked, equally as calm as Nene.

"At the time Dylan was not a threat." She continued. "In fact, he was a very fascinating individual. His boasts about letters from secret assassins were very interesting. I knew that Dylan had a lot of information to share, and I thought he may be useful in the future."

"The letters from Aldarich!" Dylan interrupted. "You knew about them!"

"Of course, child." Nene beamed. "I told you before that I have many little birds in the city that keep watch on things for me."

"Aye, your little spies, I remember!" Dylan accused.

"I have to keep my family safe and support the revolution at the same time, sweetheart. You don't think that letters from Aldarich Volger wouldn't interest me? I am the leader of an anarchist revolution, dear boy."

Dylan's eyes widened like a fish. "Hang on a squick, are you saying that you would have killed me if I didn't have those letters?"

"I think you know the answer to that, child."

Dylan froze. He began to shiver and step away from Nene. Alek felt him bumping into his shoulder, cowering away from the old woman.

"It was _you_!" Dylan whispered. His voice was almost gone and his eyes had begun to water. "You are the one who attacked me." He started wringing his hands like before and Alek glanced down at the other boy's palms. The scars from the knives that had dug into his skin were still raw and fresh.

"I'm afraid that is true, Mr. Sharp." Nene looked sadly at the ground.

Alek noticed that Dylan was shaking even more. He wrapped an arm around the boy to comfort him, then turned his face to Nene and screamed.

"YOU DID THIS!" He pointed to Dylan's hands. "HOW COULD YOU!"

From the ground, Lilit gasped loudly.

"Once again, I have to bring up that I was trying to keep my family safe." Nene answered. "I am not pleased with my actions, but I do not regret them. Dylan knew too much about the revolution and he was bringing that information to his crewmates. Once I knew that this Aldarich fellow no longer existed, I had to try and destroy the midshipman before he brought harm onto my loved ones."

"I was never going to harm your sodding family!" Dylan suddenly screamed.

"Perhaps not intentionally, child, but your captain might have. Revolutionaries are no friend to the British Airforce."

"So you were just going to kill him!" Someone else shouted, it was Alek's mother this time. She had somehow ended up behind Dylan and was standing over him like a watch dog.

"I tried to." Nene admitted. "But the boy put up more of a fight than was worth dealing with. We decided it would be best just to drug him and let nature take its course. Too much blood in the street would have caused unnecessary attention."

Dylan shifted his wait awkwardly and Alek was afraid he was going to faint, but he kept his footing and began to question his attacker again.

"You must have been the one who drugged me. I recognize your voice." He whispered. "If that was you, who attacked me with the knife?"

Nene sighed. "Zaven," She answered softly, "Lilit's father. He helped me with all of the killings except the last one."

Lilit squeaked. "You mean….there were MORE!"  
>"Yes darling. I might as well come completely clean. Our first was that poor newspaper reporter from America. He was far too nosy and knew way to much about Aleksander. If I was going to use Alek for anything I needed to make sure that no one else knew about it."<p>

"You were going to _use _Alek!" Alek's father piped in. It was the first time that he sounded less than a bit calm.

"Yes. I believe I have explained this to the young prince before. Having the dead Archduke's son at one's disposal can be very useful. Although I assure you, your Excellency, I was never going to cause Aleksander any harm."

"Very well," Franz sneered, "but do forgive me if I still despise you, madam."

"Wait a bleeding moment, you were the one who killed Eddie Malone!" Dylan chirped.

"Unfortunately I cannot deny it."

"Anybody else!"

"The last soul was the German guard who was holding Alek hostage." She replied. "I should probably get a 'thankyou' for that one."

Alek pulled Dylan closer to his side and shivered himself. He remembered the death of that guard a little too clearly. A strange black figure had appeared in the prison cell and had slit the man's throat. It occurred to him now that the voice the figure had spoken to him with was the exact same as Nene's.

"You murderer!" He grumbled at the woman. Before he could think about it he had let go of Dylan and had started rushing toward Nene with his fists raised. His father seemed to have the same idea. From the corner of his eye Alek saw Franz unsheathe a long Turkish knife and charge at the woman as well. Instantly, Nene responded by unsheathing her own knife and wrapping her arm around Alek's neck. Before his father could reach her, the woman had Alek pinned to her body with her blade at his throat, her eyes glimmering like black sapphires. Alek heard his mother scream and witnessed Dylan snatch his rigging knife out of his boot, but it was too late.

"I'm afraid I'll have to stop you there, your majesty." Nene addressed Franz. "Come any closer and Alek dies."

Alek tried to kick the short, skeletal woman but she was much stronger than him. From a foot away Franz threw his knife on the floor and raised his hands above his head. The loathing on his face was monstrous. Dylan reluctantly followed the older man's example and dropped his knife as well before lifting his arms. His fingers were clenched into fists, but Alek could still make out the scars on his palms.

"Are we finished here? Good." Nene nodded to Lilit and Marcus. "If you two would be so kind and take our friends to the cellar. I believe there is a place we can keep them locked up."

Alek shuddered when he saw Marcus draw a very long, deadly sword.

Lilit didn't move.

"I'm sorry grandmamma," She mumbled. "But I'm afraid I'm going to have to disagree with you this time."

.

.

.

.

And once again we are joined with a humorous:

.

.

.

ALTERNATE ENDING!

.

DERYN: It was you all along, NENE! or should I say..*she lifts a large rubber mask off of Nene's face* DR. HORRIBLE!"

NENE: *cackles* "That's right! I killed them all!"

LILIT: "Gee Golly, no!"

ALEK: "Like, zoinks."

NENE:"Yes, and I would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for you meddling kids!"

BOVRIL: "Scooby dooby doo!"

.

.

ah yes, so stupid but so funny


	24. Chapter 24

Her hands itched like mad.

Since the day she stitched them herself, (and what a loony idea that was) her palms had never bothered her too much. A few prickles and aches here and there, but nothing that serious. Yet right now she felt like her barking fingers were about to burn off.

Alek noticed her scratching her palms and frowned.

"I wish you would stop that." He said, reaching for her hands. He gently separated her sharp fingernails from the raw skin. "You don't want them to start bleeding."

His tender touch made her cheeks flame and she quickly snapped her hands away from him.

"Aye, we wouldn't want that." She mumbled.

Alek let out a deep breath and slumped his back into the wall behind him. Sitting on the stone floor of the anarchists' basement had proven to decompose even the most royal of postures.

"Do you think Lilit is all right?" He asked her plainly.

Deryn shrugged. "Don't suppose they'd hurt her at all, she is part of their precious family."

"I'm not questioning about her physical condition, but more on her mental state. Discovering that your grandmother is a cold heartless murderer must do numbers on a person's state of being."

Deryn couldn't care a monkey's arse about Lilit's 'state of being', but if she had to guess, Alek was probably right.

"That'll be hard for her." She agreed. "But she's a tough little lassie. I'm sure she'll figure her way out of it."

Alek nodded. "You're right." He agreed. "Although I would think you'd be a bit more worried about her."

She snorted. "Worried! Pffft, I think not! I have a lot better things to do than fret over that daft girl!"

Alek arched one eyebrow and glanced sideways at her. "Really?" He smirked. "You seemed to fancy her as more than a 'daft girl' last time I saw." He accused. "I seem to recall that she invited you to dinner and that you accepted." He gave her a prying look. "How did that go, by the way, I never found out?"

Deryn's face got even hotter.

"Are you going on about this rubbish again! I already bloody told you, I have no feelings for Lilit." Barking spiders, what was it with Alek and this stupid idea that she was moony over Lilit? And especially at a time like now when they were trapped, alone and miserable in a cold dark basement!

For once he didn't argue back at her. Instead he only smiled.

"Good." He said.

"Huh? What do you mean, 'good'? What's so good about it? And why are you all perky all of sudden? Something about that make you happy?"

He continued to grin at her weirdly. If she didn't know better she would guess he was even blushing a squick. Looking closely, she could kind of tell that his ears had turned a bit redder.

She must have looked as red as a baboon herself. Biting her lip and turning her face away Deryn quickly tried to change the subject.

"Do you think your folks are okay?" She blurted randomly.

Alek paused for a moment and peered across the room and into the dark. The basement was immense, nearly as large as the workshop above where the anarchists held and constructed their stormwalkers. At the other end of the room were two dark figures, sitting still, side by side. From this distance they didn't look like anything but Deryn knew that they were none other than Franz and Sophie Ferdinand.

For some reason Alek's parents had made an effort to seclude themselves. They were allowed free roam of the large basement and Deryn thought that the four of them were likely to stick together. Yet as soon as the large metal doors leading to the outside world had been bolted shut, Franz and Sophie had departed to a vacant corner and away from Alek and herself.

"They told me they had important matters to discuss." Alek said bluntly. "I guess whatever it is has to be kept confidential."

Deryn had known Alek long enough to pick out the insecurity in his voice.

"Does it bother you that they are leaving you out?" She asked sincerely.

He sighed. "I would be lying if I said it didn't."

She reckoned that having your parents return from the dead only to abandon you during a terrifying standoff had to be rough. Poor Alek.

She looked at him longingly. Maybe it was because she felt sorry for him, or maybe she was still lightheaded from seeing him blush a moment before, whatever it was Deryn felt the urge to reach out to him. She snatched his hand into her own and marveled at the warmth of it. As if by instinct, their fingers interlaced for a moment before Alek quickly pulled his hand back.

"I…I'm sorry." He fumbled. "Your hands must hurt."

He hadn't blushed again, (although she secretly wanted him to) but was looking at her palms with intense concern. "The pain must have rekindled again when Nene confessed to you."

"Blisters!" She swore. "Why'd you have to bring that up? Now that I'm thinking about it they've started itching again!"

She gave an exasperated groan and began working at the scars again with her fingernails.

"Good God, Dylan, STOP IT!" He reached out to pull her hands apart at the same time that she tried to push him away. It resulted in a strange sort of fist fight where she was shoving him and he was attempting to grab her hands for further inspection.

"If you would just hold still for a moment so I can see…."

"NO! Get stuffed!"

"Dylan! Would you let me look? I want to make sure you didn't reopen the wounds."

"You think I would be daft enough to do that!"

"Frankly, I do!"

She froze, alarmed by his statement. Her sudden stillness gave Alek the break to clutch her by the wrists and pin her arms to the wall behind her. The force of it caused her head to knock back with a hard thud against the cool stone.

"YOWCH!" She screamed.

"Sorry." He said, but didn't let go of her. He continued to hold onto her wrists, keeping them tightly pinned against his weight.

She was eye to eye with him now, their faces only a few inches apart. If she was warm before it was nothing compared to now. She felt a bead of sweat fall down her neck and gulped.

Alek was so close she could see the freckles on his nose and make out the beginnings of stubble growing on his cheeks. It made matters even worse that he seemed to be examining her face as well. She tried not to focus on his lips or eyes in order not to look suspicious. However, there was a good chance she snuck a few peaks at the rest of his body when she wasn't supposed to.

The seconds passed and Deryn held her breath, too nervous to move. Normally she would consider herself a brave individual. Leaping off of airships and taming Huxleys were easy feats for Deryn Sharp. Yet something simple such as sitting so tenderly close to Alek rattled her senseless.

Quick as a flechette bat, Alek had released her wrists and returned to his slumped position at her side. Cool air rushed in to where his body had been present and Deryn wrapped her arms around herself to offset the sudden cold.

"What in the blazes was that for!" She shouted at him.

Alek was staring off blankly in the distance, so it took him a moment before he answered her.

"Nothing, I was just worried about you."

"Worried about me?"

He pulled his gaze away from whatever he had been staring at and turned to face her. There was no color to his face and he was actually very pale and scared looking.

"Yes, Dylan, I'm worried about you! I know it may seem hard to believe but I am very concerned about your well being."

Deryn's eyebrows shot straight up and she had to swallow down a large gasp.

"Are….are you serious?" She sputtered.

"Do you recall what you did earlier? The way you reacted to Nene's confession was quite alarming. I was terrified that you were going to pass out!"

She snorted. "Is that what's bothering you so much? Blisters, and here I thought you were going on about something really important."

"I AM!" He snapped and sat up straight so he could look down on her. "You act all tough and bold all the time, Dylan, but underneath it all you have some bad memories you're trying to suppress. You don't remember the way you behaved the night you were attacked, but I do." He pointed at her palms gruffly and continued to lecture her. "You wanted me to kill you because of your hands. Did you forget?"

It had been a foggy memory that she hadn't thought about until now. Something she viewed as more of a dream than an actual event. Thanks to Alek resurfacing it now she was able to picture the memory clearly.

"It was scary." Was all she could say.

"Scary for you? Imagine what it was like for me! I was afraid I was going to lose you!"

"Alek, I…."

"And here you are, scratching your wounds back open again as if the whole thing never happened!"

She was perplexed. Never had she realized that Alek cared so much. It was alarming that something she had done had unnerved him like this. Admittedly she was a bit flattered. After all, he was declaring how much he was thinking about her. Nice as that was, however, she never wanted to upset him.

"I'm sorry. I won't scratch them anymore, I promise." She said quickly.

He continued to glare at her, his eyes alight with a mad sort of fire she had never seen before. Eventually he seemed to register what she had said and his expression calmed to one of sympathy and regret.

"Don't apologize." He said, slouching back against the wall. "It's not your fault. It's only that the last few days have been a little too much for me."

That was understandable. A lot had happened for Alek this week. He had escaped from the _Leviathan_, witnessed the murder of Hans Bauer, was captured by anarchists and Germans alike on top of having his parents come back to life. The whole thing made her head spin. Although it wasn't like she had had a walk through the park lately either.

"I think we all are at our wits end." She agreed. "But perhaps things will start calming down now. We can't get rattled up too much when we're stuck in a basement."

He didn't reply to her and frankly she didn't feel like talking anymore. They sat and enjoyed the silence and one anothers company for a few minutes until a soft tapping sound interrupted the quiet.

Along the wall on their right the large metal doors that locked the exit from the basement began to open. Bewildered, Deryn stood to examine the movement. Alek gave her a scolding look, obviously wanting her to sit back down, but she ignored him a tiptoed over to the doors.

The gigantic steel panels that made up the doorway were still opening when she reached them. She stood a good five feet away until the door was completely open and she could see a figure emerging from the entrance.

It was a small person with long black hair and a silk red outfit.

"Lilit?" She asked once she recognized the person standing there.

The girl nodded and instantly bolted into the room. Before Deryn could stop her, she had her arms wrapped around her body in a tight embrace.

"DYLAN!" The girl screamed. The shout was so loud and so close to Deryn's ears that her head rang like a church bell on Christmas morning.

"Lilmilt, grrrofff of meee!" She managed to growl. Thankfully Lilit understood and let go of her so that Deryn could breathe once again.

"Nene has agreed to release you!" She said with delight.

Deryn frowned and tried to rub feeling back into her ribs. "Aye, that is if you don't squeeze me to death first!"

"Why is she releasing us?" Came Franz's voice. He, Alek and Sophie must have come rushing after hearing Lilit's loud bark, for they were all circled around the doorway as well.

"She claims that there are some very important discoveries that you may be able to help her with." Lilit said cheerfully. "Something about an electric tower in one of Alek's drawings."

They all turned to Alek whose face had changed to a very light shade of purple.

"The Tesla Cannon." Alek said softly.

Deryn felt like a balloon had exploded inside her stomach. She bit her lip and took a long deep breath and scrunched her itching palms into fists.

_Sorry Alek. _She thought to herself. _It looks like things are going to get more rattled up after all! _


	25. Chapter 25

**Short chapter, sorry. I think this will probably be the third to last chapter of this story. I hate to say that I'm getting quite sick of it and I'm anxious to start on the next story. It's a lot more exciting than this one and hopefully less chapters with people just standing around and talking. **

.

.

.

"It's the _Leviathan._" Nene said, her voice serious and gray. "It's been on the horizon all morning. My guess is that she's headed for the mountains."

"The mountains?" Alek snorted. "That's ridiculous. Why would the airship be heading in _that _direction?"

Nene snatched a brass monocular off of her bed and tossed it at Alek. He had to quickly uncross his arms and leap forward in order to catch it.

"If you don't believe me then take a look for yourself." She snapped at him bitterly.

The group of them were gathered together on Nene's balcony that overlooked the eastern landscape of the city. The sun had risen only forty five minutes ago so the sky was still very dark and scattered in an array of sparkling stars. A slight breeze was picking at Alek's hair, causing him to shiver a bit. He was more than a tad jealous of Nene who was sitting amongst her quilts and blankets of her mechanical bed. Why she still pretended to need the godforsaken bed, Alek didn't know, nor did he care to say anything about it.

On his left, Dylan seemed to be thinking the same thing. His arms were hugged tightly around his chest to keep him warm and his blue eyes were vicious and icy toward Nene and her warm bed.

"Well, do you see the barking ship, Alek?" He grunted.

Alek didn't hesitate and shoved the Turkish spyglass to his face. It took some adjusting but as soon as the sunlight hit the lens correctly, Alek could make out the bulbous form of the gigantic floating whale arching across the distant sky.

"Yes." He said. "She's due east of us and headed straight for the mountains."

"Which is exactly what I told you." Nene remarked. "Now be a dear, Aleksander, and stretch your vision about twenty kilometers to the right, if you may."

Carefully, Alek moved the telescope southward along the horizon until his eyes passed over something terribly familiar.

"Good God!" He gasped.

"What is it?" Dylan said, squinting in the rising sun to where the monocular was pointing.

"The Tesla Cannon." Alek answered.

Dylan snatched the spyglass out of his hands to see for himself. Alek heard the boy curse when his eyes had focused on the large metal tower that was nestled into the majestic mountainside.

"You built a Tesla Cannon!" Alek shouted at the elderly woman. She only scowled at him.

"Don't be an idiot, boy, I've never heard of such a thing until you just described it. The Germans have been building that electric tower for months." She said. "They claim that the power generated by the structure will be enough to light half the city."

"But I saw copper beams in your workshop, enough to build a tower of that caliber! And you had newspaper clippings and photos of it as well. That's why I had so many drawings of it, because I saw that you and your family were building one!"

Nene frowned deeply. "I'm surprised that you would come to such a ludicrous conclusion." She said. "Those beams did come from the construction of that tower, but that is only because my family took them from the Germans to offset the completion of that structure. And we have been keeping close watch on the Germans and their building efforts. That's why we have so many newspaper clippings of the tower. We knew it was something dangerous, but not until you said something did I have any idea of what the name of it was."

"If you couldn't tell, the Germans have completely taken over our city!" Lilit chimed in. Alek hadn't realized that she was listening or that she was even there. She had sprung up miraculously from behind him and was now insistent on speaking. "It won't be long until they completely overpower our government and have the entire Ottoman Empire in their belonging! I mean, they already have the Sultan under their command. All they need to do next is get rid of the British!"

She pointed strongly toward the _Leviathan _and Alek felt a deep sour taste settle in the back of his throat.

"They're going to shoot down the airship." Dylan mumbled to himself in awe.

Alek could only nod. "And they're going to do it with the Cannon."

Nene looked to the sky as well in thought. "It all makes sense now. Remember that the _Leviathan _was given to the Sultan as a gift? Right now the Sultan himself is riding on the ship, enjoying a scenic route of the mountains and the outlying city. It would be easy for the Germans to destroy the ship, kill the Sultan and blame the incident on the British Navy."

"And that way the Ottomans would side with the Germans." Came a voice from the right. Franz Ferdinand had just spoken from the other side of Nene's gigantic bed. "How much time do we have, Sylvia?" He asked Nene.

Nene's face suddenly looked years older. Her wrinkles were instantly deeper and her eyes seemed to glaze over in shadow. "I would guess you have until this evening." She stated. "By nightfall the _Leviathan _will be destroyed."

Alek gulped. "What are we going to do?" He asked.

"Can you pilot a walker, young prince?" She asked.

Alek nodded.

"Good." She said gravely. "I knew I released you from the basement for a reason."


	26. Chapter 26

**Well, I've been told that the _Goliath _is in stores now. I am deeply saddened. This was one of my favorite series and I'm really dissapointed that it's ending already. I mean, really? You're going to shove the entire first world war into three books! grrrrr. **

**.**

**So, alas, I will dawdle in my reading of the _Goliath _and savor every last word of it. You may have already finished the book so please, dear readers, don't spoil it for me and post replies such as "_OMG, Deryn Dies!" _not appreciated.  
><strong>

The plan was simple: destroy the Tesla Cannon. And being a simple plan, one would think that it could be easily accomplished. All they needed to do was march the barking walkers up the mountain, smash the Tesla and call it a day.

Of course, things could never be simple.

"There's another one! About a thousand yards to your left….I mean, make that nine hundred meters!" Deryn shouted. She was perched in the viewport of the djinn playing lookout for Alek as he piloted the monstrous mechanism toward the towering Tesla.

"I see it!" Alek shouted back. His hands leapt for the controls snatching at the levers and using his body weight to swing the device to his left. The engines hissed in response and, as if connected to Alek's body, the head and torso of the djinn moved fluidly in the same direction. Alek reached for another trigger that released a missile into the hand of the walker. "On your command, Mr. Sharp." He cried.

"_Mr. _Sharp" Bovril corrected him. The beastie was perched on her shoulder, being perspicacious. Deryn, however, didn't have the time to shush the creature. She was too busy watching the ranging gauge. The little device was essential to their survival in this battle. Without it, she wouldn't be able to tell if the djinn could throw the missile far enough.

"Wait a bit!" She called down to Alek. The arrow on the gauge was still stuck on eight hundred meters.

"Better hurry up!" Alek barked. "It's getting closer!"

"Aye, and with your jumping and running about we won't get enough steam to throw the thing!"

Finally the needle hit the nine hundred meter mark meaning that the engines had gained enough steam to push the walker's arm strength to just the right power.

"Fire!" She screamed. Alek immediately pulled the lever to release the djinn's firing arm. Two seconds later and a thousand yards to their left an Ottoman walker exploded. The sixth one they destroyed that night. It reminded Deryn of smashing insects on the wall. You could keep killing the flies but no matter how many you smacked dead there would be another to take its place.

The Ottoman stormwalkers were similar in that they seemed to appear out of nowhere. One mechanical device easily replacing the one they had just destroyed. The things even looked like insects. They were large scorpion shaped walkers that scurried over the ground like spiders.

"Any more of them?" Alek cried over the booming of the guns.

She carefully examined the grounds before them, straining her eyes through the lens of the bronze Clanker binoculars. Surprisingly, there were no more scorpions to be seen. Although she could make out the outline of Lilit's walker shooting the clart out of something. Further in the distance there was another explosion, probably from Zaven's walker. Lilit's father had taken the most dangerous position as the leader of their small cavalry while Alek's father had taken the second most perilous spot behind him. Lilit and Alek were stuck in the rear.

Alek had complained at first when he had heard the plan. He had wanted to be in the forefront of the action with Zaven and his father. Deryn guessed that they were positioned toward the rear not only because they were younger and less experienced in warfare, but also because Franz Ferdinand would do everything to protect his son. He didn't want Alek to even pilot a walker in the first place. If Nene hadn't insisted, Alek and Deryn would probably be back at the warehouse picking their noses.

Franz may have tried to shield Alek, but Deryn could tell that even if they were in the rear, there was no safe zone in this battle. The Ottoman walkers had been attacking since they left the city. They were smaller contraptions, not nearly as powerful and huge as the djinn and her compatriots, but the little scorpions still punched back hard.

Minutes before, a rather nasty scorpion walker had aimed its guns right at Deryn's viewport. The shot had been so strong it had knocked her out of her seat and into the cockpit. Her head still stung from when she had clocked it on the steel wall behind her.

"I think we're coming to a standstill." Alek called up to her. He pulled the controls up to his face, causing the walker to slow and stop. The engines hissed and cooled for a moment before Alek let go of the contols. Then, without warning, he raised his arm and pointed in the distance. "Is that…? What in God's name is he doing?"

Deryn snapped her binoculars around to where Alek was pointing. Through the dusty haze of gunfire she could make out the silhouette of the Tesla Cannon. It stood proudly in the fading sunlight, gleaming in a copper gold reflection almost like a fine necklace or charm. If she squinted enough she could make out the fuzzy form of the _Leviathan_ drifting closer and closer to the immense tower.

"What is who doing?" She asked, still not understanding what Alek was gawking at.

"It's Zaven! He's charging straight into the tower!"

Zaven's walker was probably the most impressive of the lot. Towering at nearly ninety feet high, the Sahmeran was a frightening machine to behold. Lilit had explained that it was shaped in the form of an ancient goddess. Even from this distance she could make out the elegant curves and rich silver paneling of the strong female form.

Yet the beautiful and terrifying walker was headed for the base of the Tesla Cannon. Deryn gasped in horror as the Sahmeran tossed a crumpled Elephante out of her way and continue straight on for the electric tower.

"He's going to sacrifice himself to the tower!" Alek shrieked.

"Well don't just sit there, you daft ninny! Get your arse in gear and trample over there! We have to stop him!"

He nodded and shifted his weight again to turn the djinn southward toward the Tesla. Deryn felt her knees tremble as Alek pushed his legs forward and started the stormwalker forward at top speed. The machine rocked back and forth with each of Alek's foot falls, its legs in exact unison with the prince's feet. The motion made Deryn slightly nauseous. She wasn't too fond of riding in such a large metal man.

"I think we're too late." Alek said. He was suddenly pulling the djinn to a hault.

"What do you mean? He hasn't reached the bloody tower yet!"

"Listen to your fabrication!" Alek snapped back.

Over the head pounding clanks of metal Deryn could hear Bovril beside her ear. Its voice crackled and hummed like a powerful electric current.

"That tower is prepared to shoot any moment!" Alek said, his own voice cracking with fear. "There's no way we'd reach Zaven in time to stop him, and even if we did, there would be no other way to stop the Tesla."

Deryn frowned. He was right. If, miraculously, they were able to reach the Sahmeran there still wouldn't be time to prevent the _Leviathan _from being shot down from the heavens. It seemed that the only way to save her ship was to let Lilit's father continue with his plan. Sadly, she lifted the binoculars once more and watched the Sahmeran crash into the base of the tower.

The impact was silent at first then, an instant later, a thunderous crack of lightening split through her skull, louder than any cannon she had ever heard. It was so bright she had to shut her eyes and turn away from the vantage point. Bovril's claws were digging into her shoulder and from the seat below her she could hear Alek scream a curse.

"Poor man." She said, rubbing her eyes to regain sight. Eventhough they were shut the glare from the electricity had blinded her through her eyelids. Blinking away stars, Deryn tried to make out what remained of the Tesla Cannon. It looked as though the tower had completely fallen over, although she couldn't be quite sure with her hazy vision.

Without warning something smashed into the metal beside her. She was once again thrown out of her seat and crashed into the steel wall on her left. The force of it was so hard she thought she may have broken an arm. Thankfully she easily returned to her seat a second later and both her arms were perfectly mobile, although very sore.

"Barking Clanker contraptions! If this were a beastie it would have natural walls of membrane, not bone crushing steel!" She said in disgust.

"If you were paying attention and staying on the lookout we wouldn't be hit in the first place!" Alek yelled at her.

She was about to say that she wouldn't have to play lookout in a fabrication; the beastie would have eyes of its own, but quickly held her tongue. Alek was fumbling with the controls so much she was afraid that he might break an arm instead. Apparently that last hit they took was a little more than the stormwalker could take. The djinn was listing dangerously to the left and Deryn could feel the machine losing her balance. Poor Alek was doing all he could to keep the walker on her feet, but it seemed he was losing the battle.

Slowly the djinn begain to lean even more. Inch by inch she continued to slant and Alek was hastily using all his stength to push the thing back forward. Deryn could see his cheeks were puffed out in exertion and his body was completely stretched in the opposite direction of the listing. As if he were trying to turn the whole machine with only his own arms.

She was about to jump down to help him but it was too late. They were no longer leaning but falling to the ground. She felt weightless for a moment before the entire eighty foot tall structure collapsed into the dirt beside it.

Deryn had put her arms out to stop her fall, which she realized instantly was a very very daft idea. It had been a hands first tumble into the metal frame of the djinn. She screamed when she hit the side of the walker, expecting her wrists to be broken at least.

However, when she held them up to examine a second later she was relieved to see they were whole.

"Alek, are you all right?" She called as soon as she was able to stand. She heard a moan to her right and ran through the sideways cockpit of the fallen walker to where the sound had come from.

Alek had not faired as well as she from the fall. He had become caught in the controls and it looked like his head had hit one of the levers rather smartly. An open wound was bleeding freshly from his forehead.

Deryn gasped and instantly slapped her hand over the wound to stop the bleeding, but Alek quickly brushed her off.

"I'm fine." He said gruffly then started to pull himself out of the controls. He stood up suddenly and almost fell if Deryn hadn't been there to catch him.

"Be careful, you've hit your head." She said, gently helping him to his feet. Alek raised his fingers to his wound to feel for bleeding.

"Oh." He said when his fingertips revealed the blood. His eyes fluttered a bit and he lost his footing again before Deryn reached out to steady him.

"Keep pressure on it!" Deryn commanded him and pushed his hand back up to his forehead. "Now how do we get out of here?"

There was no exit from the cockpit that she could see. The visor had been shut during the battle and was bent beyond opening by now. As for the doorway they had used to enter the contraption, it was also crumpled and destroyed. She wasn't sure that exiting through the rear of the walker would be safe anyways.

They were stuck. Deryn felt a new horrible fear settling in her abdomen. It was a mix of Closter phobia and fear for Alek's life. It felt like the little cockpit was getting ghastly smaller.

"We're never going to get out of here!" She gasped. Alek's eyes widened as he seemed to be absorbing her terror.

"What do you mean?" He asked in panic. "Are the exits all blocked?"

She nodded and Alek gulped loudly. One of his hands was squeezing the life out of her arm while the other was still clenched to his forehead over the bleeding gash.

A small noise caught Deryn's attention and she pulled her face away from Alek's horrified expression.

"Bovril?" She said, turning around to see the beastie muttering to itself and clutching her leather satchel.

"Has the creature gone mad as well? Excellent!" Alek peeved. Deryn raised a hand to silence him.

"No, I think its trying to tell us something."

She moved closer to Bovril and listened closely to what the loris was saying. It wasn't words exactly but a sound of chattering. Like stones hitting a glass window pane.

She frowned at the beastie. "Bovril, this isn't a time to be cute. Just spit it out!"

The loris tilted its head to one side then lifted her satchel with its front paws and gave the bag a little shake. The contents inside the bag clattered loudly and Bovril mimicked the sound, the same as the one he just did.

Deryn snatched the bag from the loris and opened it.

"Of course! I've been so daft! Why didn't I think of it earlier?"

"Think of what?" Alek looked over her shoulder as she emptied the contents of her satchel.

"Barnacles!" Deryn exclaimed, lifting a glass jar above her head in triumph and giving it a little shake. The shells inside clinked against the glass marvelously.

"Beg your pardon?" Alek asked. "But did you say barnacles?"

"Aye!" She squeeled. "Marvelous little beasties they are! Dr. Barlow gave them to me. They eat steel."

Alek's face turned slightly green. "Ummm…they do what?" He said, pushing both hands against his head wound.

Deryn didn't bother explaining it to a Clanker prince and quickly climbed up the floor of the slanting cockpit. She shook the barnacle jar again, angering the little fabs so they produced more steel destroying mucous. When she finished her climb she was back at the viewport with the binoculars. It was probably where the metal wall was thinnest. With a twist of the wrist she opened the contents of the jar and tossed it onto the steel wall that held up the small window of the viewport.

Seconds passed into minutes as she waited and watched the wall. She bit her lip, waiting in silence for any sign of the metal decaying.

"God's wounds!" Alek marveled suddenly. He had climbed up beside her, balancing on the seat she had been keeping lookout from before. "The wall is melting!"

She smiled. Sure enough, a tine hole the size of her thumbnail had appeared where she had thrown the barnacle fluid. It slowly grew to the size of her fist and then faster to fit a person's head and faster still until it almost covered half of the wall.

"Better jump through, your highness." She gestured to Alek. Dumbfounded, the prince stared at her and then back at the wall.

"But what if….that can't be safe!" Alek sputtered.

"Just don't touch the metal. We wouldn't want that stuff getting on your skin." She said.

Alek took a deep breath and lifted himself through the hole. When he was through he reached down with his free hand to help Deryn through.

They didn't stay long on the walker. Luckily, Alek's head wound was not as bad as it seemed. He showed her that it had stopped bleeding once they reached the ground.

"We should go check on the others." Alek said seriously. His eyes were darting toward the fallen Tesla Tower, no doubt wondering if his father was victim to the same fate as Zaven.

They ran toward the fallen tower. Deryn hadn't realized how gigantic it was from inside the stormwalker. Out in the open, the Tesla Cannon was overpowering. Outstretched on the ground as it was now she would guess that it was nearly the length of the _Leviathan_.

"There's your father!" She said, pointing to the walker called the iron golem. It was still upright and walking fine, proof of Franz's impressive piloting skills.

"Yes." Alek said, but his voice was cool. "The Minotaur has fallen."

Deryn followed Alek's gaze and shuddered. The minotaur had been Lilit's walker and it was now lying facedown in the dirt, completely trampled by Elephantes.

They continued to run in silence toward the destruction. Only a few Elephantes and scorpions seemed to be still walking, and those were being shot down by Franz's walker.

"Over there!" Alek suddenly pointed. On top of a cliff edge they were passing, a lone figure was standing and gazing out over the city. Deryn could see long braids blowing in the wind from the figure's head.

"Lilit!" She screamed and dashed over to the anarchist girl. As soon as she was in arms reach, Lilit crashed into her and embraced her in a tight hug.

"Dylan! Thank God you're all right!" She shouted.

"Lilit…you…your father." Alek stuttered. He awkwardly pointed toward the Tesla Cannon and the fallen Sahmeran. "I'm so sorry."

Lilit pushed away from Deryn and shrugged. There were no tears on her face and she was even managing a small bit of a smile.

"He died doing what's right." She explained. "We needed him to do it, the _Leviathan _needed him to do it, and so did my people." She gestured behind her to the skyline of Istanbul behind her. Deryn felt her mouth drop as she witnessed the view of the city. Explosions were dancing over the buildings like fallen stars and she could make out the outlines of hundreds of walkers piloting amongst the streets.

"The revolution." Alek mumbled.

Lilit nodded. "Thanks to you, we were able to distract the Sultan's guard and the Germans with this attack, leaving the city wide open for a full revolution on the palace."

Deryn shivered in her boots. "Barking spiders." She whispered.

"Barking spiders." Repeated Bovril.

Lilit smiled at the little beastie and stroked its fur. "I guess this is goodbye then." She said, pulling out a long cloth bag from her side and opening it. She pulled a strange contraption out that reminded Deryn of a large dragonfly.

"And where exactly are you planning to go, lassie?" Deryn scolded. "No point in getting yourself killed in this mess. You better stay put!"

Lilit beamed. "Nene needs me, my people need me. I wish I could stay, Dylan, especially with you being here. You are by far the most extraordinary boy I have ever met!"

Deryn gaped at the strange anarchist girl. It was a lovely compliment, to be sure, although she wish she were getting it from Alek instead.

"Aye, well I suppose…"

But Lilit didn't let her finish. She wrapped one arm around Deryn's waist and pulled her close, planting her lips firmly on Deryn's mouth.

Deryn didn't move. She couldn't. She was being kissed by a barking girl for Christ's sake! So she just stood there, with her eyes wide open arms at her side, debating when would be the right time to give Lilit a good shove.

Yet the kiss was over as suddenly as it started. Lilit pulled away and smiled up at Deryn bashfully.

"I'm sorry!" She giggled. "I guess I was just curious."

"CURIOUS!" Deryn stuttered. "Blisters, what the hell for? I mean, you hardly even know me!"

"I know you better than you think, _Mr. _Sharp." She said with a wink before turning to Alek. "You don't know what a friend you have in Dylan." And with one last smile, she lifted the dragonfly contraption onto her back and leapt off the cliff.

Alek dashed forward and Deryn followed him but Lilit did not need rescuing. Her dragonfly had caught the wind and was now gliding her through the air and towards the city. They could just make out her laughter on the breeze as she disappeared from view.

"She is mad." Alek said, shaking his head. Deryn nodded in agreement.

They continued to stare at the explosions over Istanbul when something loud popped behind them.

"Alek!" Someone shouted. They flipped around to see Franz Ferdinand climbing down from his iron golem. He rushed across the space between them and scooped his son into a metal crushing hug. "You're alive! When I saw your walker fall, I thought the worst! Thank heavens you're safe!" Surprisingly he reached over and smacked Deryn warmly on the back. "And you as well, Dylan. It's good to see you in one piece!"

"ALEK!" Another, more high pitched scream echoed through the night. Deryn saw Sophie's slender form emerge from the walker and snatch Alek away from her husband. She began to shower his face in kisses between broken bits of German.

"Calm down, mother!" Alek said, gently pushing her away. Deryn could see a faint tear running down his cheek. "Good heavens! What are you even doing here? You were supposed to stay back at the warehouse where it's safe! This is no place for a woman. Especially one who is expecting."

Sophie's face instantly turned to a scowl.

"I tried to keep her behind but she wouldn't listen to me." Franz sighed. "You know how it is."

Deryn could guess very well that Sophie had put up quite a stink to get in that walker and that there was nothing her husband could have done to stop her.

"Well, did you expect me to send him off forever without a proper goodbye!" She snarled.

"What do you mean, forever?" Alek said, crossing his arms. "We're you expecting me to die?"

Sophie replied with some sort of foul German word and Franz and Alek both rolled their eyes.

"I didn't mean that!" She snapped then lifted a hand to wipe her teary face. "We've decided, well your father has decided, that it would be better if we parted ways now."

Alek's face paled considerably and his eyes seemed to double in size. "What?"

"No need in arguing now, son, it's already done." He pointed up to the sky. "The _Leviathan_ is on her way as we speak. We've already signaled to the airship that Dylan is alive. They are on their way over to fetch him and you will be joining him on board."

"But…" Alek gasped. "but why?"

"For your safety, of course." Franz replied effortlessly. "You must return to Britain and away from this horrific war."

Deryn could see Alek's eyes begin to glass over with faint tears. "But that doesn't make any sense! The Darwinists are the enemy!"

"That's true Alek, but they won't kill you as the Germans would. If you were to stay here the Ottomans could find you and then hand you over like a box of chocolates to their German friends."

"….the revolution."

"is ousting the Sultan, not the Germans." Franz admitted. "I cannot risk leaving you here."

"I don't entirely agree with it myself." Sophie sniffed. "But your father is right, dear, it would be best if you left."

A low grumbling sound was thundering from above and Deryn glanced up to see the _Leviathan _descending fast. The faint lovely scent of burning almonds drifted to her nose and she breathed in the wonderful smell of Hydrogen.

"We best be off." Franz said, giving his son a final pat on the shoulder.

"WAIT!" Deryn shouted, grasping the archduke's arm before he turned away. "You should come with us!"

Franz only sighed and gave her a sad smile. "That is a very kind offer, Dylan, and I wish I could accept, but I'm afraid that the world still believes that we are deceased. If my wife and I were to miraculously appear on a British hydrogen breather, I'm afraid that evferything would turn over backwards."

She slowly let go of his arm and watched hopelessly as he and his wife started back towards the stormwalker.

"It'll be allright, Alek, I promise." He said to his son. "And stay close to Dylan, he's a loyal friend."

He gave a salute to Alek before grasping hold of a ladder and ascending back into the walker. Behind him, Sophie was in tears. She gave Alek one last hug, said a few more things in German and then dashed after her husband as if afraid that she'd change her mind. Alek only stood there motionlessly, watching wide-eyed as the iron golem powered back into life and slowly marched his parents away into the night.

"Alek?" Deryn said softly, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. "Are you going to be all right?"

He met her eyes and smiled miserably. "He told me once that children raised in war are the strongest. I'm beginning to understand that now."

Deryn bit her lip. She couldn't think of what to say to him but it seemed that Alek didn't want to listen to her anyways. Instead she gave him a sideways hug.

Above them the _Leviathan _was dropping her rescue lines.


	27. Chapter 27

The delicate pink paper unfolded in his hands like a blooming rose. It was a small letter, nearly the size of a pocket watch and fragile as an eggshell. Alek reread the flamboyant script inside one last time and groaned.

Printed in red ink so bright it made him squint, were three flowery words:

_IT'S A GIRL!_

Alek was worried he'd get a cavity from just holding the note. It was one of those store bought greeting cards that women drooled over at the local candy shop or department store. Of anyone he thought his mother would be above such sugary salutations.

Below the three words were a few more, scratched out in sharp black pen.

_So sorry for the disgusting card, but your mother insisted. I've never used a bird to send a letter before, but I suppose our forefathers used carrier pigeons just fine. Hopefully this note finds you well. _

_The Darwinist doctors claim that the baby will be female, although I have no idea how they would know after only six weeks of gestation. Your mother, of course, is ecstatic and has already picked out a name. Something along the lines of _Elizabeth _or _Emily. _I couldn't say why but she really would prefer an English name. _

_Give our regards to the Count and Mr. Sharp. _

_Sincerely,_

_ Father._

It was strange, Alek thought, how the card made him more nervous than excited. He looked out his cabin window, examining the snowy landscape of Russia beneath him in silence. The Clanker engines of the _Leviathan _thundered above him and he could see the wisps of cilia moving up and down the ship's flank outside the glass.

Here he was, stranded on a Darwinist airship halfway around the world while his parents were visiting boffins for pregnancy checkups and sending him letters via messenger falcon. Had the Hapsburgs become Darwinists in this crazy war?

He sighed and folded the letter up again before shoving it in his pocket. What was really terribly strange was that none of this seemed to bother him at all. He quite enjoyed being like a Darwinist.

No, the thing that was really sticking at him like a needle in his side were those same three words: _it's a girl. _

Not only was the baby a girl, but he had a feeling that someone else might be as well. Especially after the accounts of his last night in Istanbul.

His arms were shaking and his stomach was fluttering like a hummingbird, but Alek tried to ignore it. Finally he pushed away from his window and out of his cabin into the hallway.

It had been a little more than a week since he and Dylan had climbed the rescue ladders up to the airship. The captain had thanked them generously for their actions in Istanbul, but either than that, life aboard the _Leviathan _had returned to normal. Dylan had gone back to his middy duties and Alek was continuing to teach the Darwinists how to run the engines. He and the midshipman had remained close friends. Every morning they would make time to eat breakfast together at the middy mess hall and Alek enjoyed having a companion to share his time with.

Yet each day he couldn't help but remember something Lilit had said before she jumped off that cliff. He hadn't brought it up with Dylan, not yet, and it had been nagging at him like a biting fly for the past few days. Each hour it grew stronger and stronger.

Now with the letter from his parents happily proclaiming _IT'S A GIRL!_, Alek found that he couldn't ignore it any longer.

He needed to find out if his friend was a woman.

And it wasn't like he could just ask him. First of all, Dylan would just deny it no matter what the truth was. Plus, if Alek had assumed wrong then he would be deeply insulting Dylan by asking in the first place. There had to be another way to find out for sure.

Quicker than he would have liked, he found himself knocking on Dylan's cabin door.

"It's open!" Shouted his friend from inside. Alek shoved the door open roughly, making Dylan jump in surprise.

"I need to talk to you." He said gruffly. Dylan frowned and looked up from his boot laces that he had been fussing over.

"Aye," Dylan responded quizzically, "you look upset about something. What do you need to talk about?"

"Pardon me, I misspoke." Alek answered. His voice was chattering a bit but he forced himself forward a few steps anyways. "I mean…that is… I need to try something."

"Try something?" Dylan stood up straight and narrowed his eyes. "What on earth are you blethering about?"

Alek was now right in front of him, nearly a hand's width apart. Standing this close it was easy to see the height difference between them. It was only a few centimeters but it was still enough to make Alek cringe. This wasn't going to be easy. He might as well just get it over with.

Without pausing to breath he snatched his hands around Dylan's head and pulled his face toward his own. Alek closed his eyes and smashed his lips against the other boy's mouth.

Dylan struggled at first, obviously shocked by Alek's sudden action, but soon he stopped fighting and seemed to melt into Alek's kiss.

Alek's brain had gone numb for a moment. Now that he had accomplished the task his body seemed to be relaxing and actually enjoying the touch of another person's lips. His heart was now beating to a completely different melody, one of excitement rather than nerves.

Dylan's mouth opened against his and he felt the soft warmth of the other boy's tongue press between his lips. He shuddered, causing his brain to flip back into attention.

_Here is your answer. _He thought. _Would you feel this way if you were kissing another boy? _

Smiling, Alek slowly pulled his face away but allowed his hands to continue holding Dylan's head, his fingers entwined in the golden hair.

Dylan's eyes snapped open in horror.

"HOLY SH…I mean…BLISTERS, ALEK! What the hell was that for!"

Alek let go of her head and backed up toward the door.

"I guess I was just curious." He said, grinning to himself and reaching for the doorknob.

"Barking spiders! You were CURIOUS? What is that even supposed to mean? ! Hey…I'm talking to you _dumpkopf! _Where in the blazes do you think you're going? ALEK!"

He was already halfway down the hallway toward the mess hall, ignoring her screams from behind him.

Lilit had been right all along, it seemed, there was something very curious about _Mr. _Sharp.

.

.

.

**Thanks for reading everyone! That was the last chapter. Hope you've enjoyed it!**


End file.
